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This week in the Syrian blogsphere · Global Voices
Yazan Badran

To start off, like always Ammar Adulhamid has a very interesting article about the role that Arab/Syrian Americans are now playing in the democracy fight back home, and the role they could play, giving the example of the Arab-American Anti Discrimination Committee's last conference…
The reality is Arab Americans have been quite lucky, relatively speaking. For despite all the stereotypes that exist about them in popular imagination and in the media and despite the acts of terror being perpetuated in their name, no matter how partially, they were never subjected to the kind of practical discrimination that other minority groups in this country have had to deal with, so far. We might indeed be able to make a good argument that this situation is rather tenuous, but that does not excuse or justify getting in bed with Arab regimes.
Nassim Yaziji from Middle East Policy has an interesting article about “The Neo-Internationalism After 9/11″, and how this affect the democracy process in the middle east…
I think that to reform the Middle East we have primarily to change the political system and the geopolitics of the Middle East. This objective needs to be accomplished an international effort rests on the international standards which normally compiled by the international order, considering the fact that the post-cold war international order is neither designed nor provided for this task. The way is paved for this process after the necessary change in Iraq.
On a lighter note, George Ajjan comments on an article from Reuters, that refers to the Syrian President Bashar Assad, by his first name “Bashar”, instead of the more formal “Assad” usually used to refer to heads of state.
Generally speaking, media use surnames when pertaining to heads of state. The most notable exception in recent memory is former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein al-Majd al-Tikriti, whom the media, both Arabic and English, regularly identified as “Saddam”. Although this was arguably as much the result of his own self-imposed personality cult as anyone's outside attempt to de-legitimize the man. I do recall occasional attempts to professionalize this matter, reading the NY Times refer to “Mr. Hussein”, which never seemed to fit.
Away from politics, and on to the Syrian streets, where Ammar from My Many My's, posts about the huge gap, between people that are becoming more and more religious, and another part going into “extreme” liberalism, reflecting the current trend to shift away from moderation in the Syrian society…
During the last few years, these two extremes found a lot of followers. People like those are alarmingly increasing in our society, and are threatening to ruin the culture of moderation that Damascus always enjoyed. I am not just acting “proud of our glorious past”, but if you ask your parents, this is worse than anytime before, even when women were covered from head to toe, they were moving gradually into conservative liberty while using their heads.
Omar from Earth to Omar, has a brilliant post abut the concept of Identity, asking very important questions, making his own experience, as Syrian-born-and-raised Palestinian, who emigrated to Canada and now has a Canadian citizenship…
At the age of 12 I had no official citizenship. I did not have a passport, I belonged to a country that politically did not (and continues to not) exist, and that’s where Canada comes in. Canada gave me my first citizenship, and my first passport. For the first time ever, I officially belonged to a country. Some people will say “but you’re only Canadian on paper” but I would like to argue otherwise. In a couple of years I will have lived Canada as long as I lived in Syria. In fact, I spent in Canada the most important years of my life. I spent my teen years here, and now I’m spending the first years of my adulthood here. Canadian culture shaped me, and influenced me in the same way that it shaped and influenced Canadian-born Canadians, if you will. Does that make me Canadian then? Are you “from” the country that gave you your first citizenship?

author: Yazan Badran


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Afghanistan:TV Channels & Security · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Dialogue3 says  many try to launch their own TV channels in Kabul (Persian). He also says many worry about security in Kabul. Dialogue3, despite everything enjoys being in Kabul.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Fred Petrossian


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Armenia: Notes from the Blogosphere · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Onnik Krikorian has a roundup of the Armenian blogosphere.

author: Nathan Hamm


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Armenia: Yerevan Construction · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Christan Garbis has photos of the new construction in Yerevan that is taking place of the city's historic structures. His photos show that poor materials and techniques are being used to construct the new buildings.


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Bangladesh: Jhalmuri and Popcorn · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Drishtipat on the changing face of street food in Dhaka. Jhalmuri replaced by Popcorn. “However when I was in Dhaka earlier this year, I found jhhalmuri vendors being replaced with popcorn vendors. You hardly can stop in any traffic light without being solicited to buy the pre packed popcorns.”

author: Neha Viswanathan


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Cambodian Views on Football World Cup · Global Voices
Tharum Bun

Football fatasy. Football frenzy. Football fever. You name it. People all over the the world are watching the Football FIFA world Cup 2006, hosting in Germany, so are Cambodia. Euphoria and insomnia comes to almost all of us, not to mention Cambodian buddist monks. Just days ahead of the opening match between Germany and Costa Rica, patriarch Non Nget has told Cambodia's 40,000 Buddhist monks to remain passive while watching World Cup football games or be defrocked. Among 32 national teams vying for glory in the world's most popular sport, there is no Cambodia national team. Since its inception in 1930 that the national team has not once qualified to play the world cup tournament. But that is not the case of not loving of football. Here, people from every of walk of life stay up late into the night to watch their favourite teams.
What Cambodia have to say on the football world cup?
Germany to win the World Cup?
Just hours after Germany thrashed Ecuador 3-0 in the first round of the tournament, Cambodian prime minister tipped home advantage Germany to win the world cup.
Dream of Cambodia in the World Cup
As he enjoyed watching live match on TV, a local weblogger asked if he will get at least once chance in his lifetime to see his home national team reach the world cup final kick-off. “I am not sure whether I live long enough to see Cambodia go to World Cup” he thought.
Watching and betting on football
When football is more than just passion, discussion on its side effects are also ongoing in the virtual world. Should Cambodian people bet on the football World Cup? Should Cambodian buddisht monks be allowed to watch the exciting sport on TV? In Siem Reap, most potential tourist destination, a robbery took place at night. The victim was a female voluntary worker. It is already dark here in Cambodia by the time the matches start in Germany.
Three guys on a motorbike – without their lights on – pushed her bike over and grabbed her bag.
…We figure World Cup fever – and the partying that accompanies it – makes this kind of thing more likely at the moment. Her rent money was probably spent on World Cup betting, beer and bargirls. As some of the other items aren't worth much in financial terms, she's hoping to get them back.
A sleepless night
Due to stomach ache, Sopha, who considered herself an ordinary girl, had the chance to stay up into the small hours of the night to watch Germany beat Costa Rica in the opening match of the tournament.
Yet, there was one thing good about this sleeplessness.. Last night, I could stay up and watch the victory of my favorite World Cup team Germany over Costa Rica.. 4-2.. That's great, right? However, I was a bit disappointed since my hero Michael Ballack was unable to join his team.. Well, after all I was very satisfied with the result.
Again, tonight my English heroes got their first match.. :).. I am happy though it seemed just like a lucky game for them :) .. Really wish that either Germany or England get this year CUP.. I'll be extremely happy.

author: Tharum Bun


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China: District white house in Henan · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Blasts reports that a series of photos were widely circulated in China internet these days. The photos show “the world's leading” government building campus (the so-called “white house” among netizens) in a district level town at Zhengzhou city in Henan province (zh). There are several links to local BBS discussing the social and psychological implications of this district government project.

author: Oiwan Lam


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China: Free Hao Wu!!! · Global Voices
Rebecca MacKinnon

We are now on Day 133 since Hao Wu, Chinese filmmaker and Global Voices Northeast Asia Editor, disappeared into detention without charge. We have been doing what we can to keep Hao's case from being forgotten. The WSJ's Geoffrey Fowler now has an in-depth story titled Gray Zone: An Arrest in China Spotlights Limits to Artistic Freedom in China, detailing Hao's detention and the context in which it happened. Here's how it begins:
Gray Zone An Arrest in China
Spotlights Limits
To Artistic Freedom Hao Wu Set Out to Make Film
On Unofficial Churches,
Then Vanished From Sight
Blog Advice: ‘Be Careful, Man’
By GEOFFREY A. FOWLER
July 3, 2006; Page A1
After 12 years in the U.S., filmmaker Hao Wu returned to his homeland two years ago to document the changes shaping Chinese society. He fell in with a crowd of artists and writers and often wrote on his blog about balancing American ideals of civil liberty with the practical realities he found in China.
"Change has to happen," he wrote in a Feb. 17 posting. "But the Chinese have to figure it out themselves."
Five days later, Mr. Wu was arrested and he has been in detention ever since. His alleged crime remains a mystery to his friends, his family and even the lawyer his sister hired to help. These people believe he was detained over his work on a documentary film about Christian churches that aren't recognized by the Chinese government. The lawyer, Wu Yigang, says the Beijing police told him the detention is related to "state secrets," which limits the possibility of a defense. The Public Security Ministry didn't respond to questions.
After describing the contradictory and often confusing cultural and political situation in China, Fowler continues:
Mr. Wu holds a green card but hasn't yet received U.S. citizenship, according to his friends. "His dream is for speaking out freely, and for making films…to let people in other countries see what was really happening in China," says his sister Nina Wu, in a March interview. Ms. Wu, a mutual-fund manager in Shanghai, quit her job recently to pursue her brother's release full time. "He knows there are some problems here but he loves China and thinks things are getting better and better."
Click here to read the rest.
It has been nearly a month since Hao's sister Nina last wrote on her blog. An excerpt from that post:
Back to Beijing again. I missed my brother when staring at his books and things. Hard to believe that their owner has been gone for so long. Looking at the note folded in the book on which my brother wrote down the address of a restaurant, I can’t help crying out. I saw his clean and fresh handwriting, and imagined his state of mind when writing down these notes. He is always my brother. A person with such simplicity and passion for life does not deserve such winding complications. No matter what others might say about him, our firm belief and trust in him will not change.
We've confirmed that Nina is ok. However her health is not great and she's under a lot of pressure. Please head over to Freehaowu.org and hit the comments section and share some supportive words with her, and please go over to her Chinese blog and let her know that you are rooting for her, and for Hao.
Also please don't forget to sign the petition and write letters to your elected representatives and local media. If you have a website or blog click here for "Free Hao Wu" badges you can put on your site.

author: Rebecca MacKinnon


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China: sex-selective abortion · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Chinese Law professor blog reports that on June 29th, the National People's Congress Standing Committee adopted a number of amendments to the Criminal Law, effective immediately. Sex-selective abortion has not been criminalized. The existing ratio of male and female birth rate is 1.19 : 1 indicating that sex-selective abortion has been rather serious. However, representatives from the national congress stressed that gender inequality culture and tradition could not be dealed with by criminal law (Xinhua news via blog) (zh).


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China: Tibet Railroad · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

China inaugurated the Tibet railroad on July 1. Mainland blogger like Bingfengteahouse believes that it is a truely blessing for Tibetian. However, The China Confidential comments that “Tibetans are rapidly becoming an underclass in their own country as a result of the government-sponsored Chinese influx and persecution of Tibetans“.  A writer from InMediaHK criticizes that China and Hong Kong media are overwhelmingly positive about the railroad without questioning the power relation between the Chinese and Tibetian (Zh). ESWN translates a Chinese reporter Fu Jianfeng's notes on his personal experience at the Tibet railroad inauguration trip. Sun Bin has a collection of videos.


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Developing World: Cultures of Repair · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Timbuktu Chronicles points to a long essay on the blog of Nokia researcher Jan Chipchase, detailing the cultures of repair which spring up in developing countries.

author: Luisetta Mudie


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Ethiopia’s blogosphere takes a hit · Global Voices
Andrew Heavens

Ethiopia's once burgeoning blogging scene took a hit over the past few weeks after the bulk of its weblogs mysteriously disappeared from computer screens inside the country.
All online journals hosted on Blogger's blogspot platform – about two thirds of the Ethio blogosphere – are still affected – as are a number of anti-government websites. (All are still visible outside Ethiopia.)
Many of the bloggers themselves, including GlobalVoices’ own Ethan Zuckerman, have blamed the disappearances on the country's government and its state monopoly telecoms company ETC, accusing them of starting Sub-Saharan Africa's first widespread blog blockage.
Government spokespeople have pleaded their innocence, on one occasion insisting that they lacked the technical know-how to engage in cyber-censorship.
Whatever the cause, the disappearances are continuing to have a serious impact on the writers themselves.
Five of the 32 Ethiopian blogs tracked by GlobalVoices have stopped blogging altogether since their websites were first obstructed in mid-May. Blogging on other sites has slowed (with the notable exception of Ethiopia's diaspora writers in the USA). Worst of all, the regular flow of new blogs that was seen through the early months of 2006 has stalled.
Many grassroot writers inside the country told others by e-mail that they could no longer log on to add new entries.
Others – who assumed that the problem was the result of a government clamp-down – had more pressing worries.
Carpe Diem Ethiopia began by wondering why the government had done it in his post Blogging in the valley of the shadow of death:
Here’s what's baffling: If Meles [Ethiopia's prime minister] has done his homework and did indeed seek the advice of the Chinese (which we doubt—aren’t there Ethiopians who can do that?), he would know his blog-blocking venture would be tantamount to placing a band-aid on a shotgun wound. Given the negligible gains blog-blocking brings him, he should conclude his cyber censorship is more harmful to his regime's image than the trouble worth going through…
Our take on why they're doing it? To show you, the editors of news sites and bloggers as well as our readers that they could. It's simple as that. It says I can reach you; it says “you're put on notice: I fucking hate you.”…
He went on to raise further fears:
If they knew our identities and had access to our bodies in Ethiopia, what would they do? Would stalwart bloggers including ethiopundit, ET Wonqette, Dagmawi, Ethiopian Politics, One Ethiopia, Redeem Ethiopia, aqumada, Tsegasaurus, Ethio Zagol and others who have taught us so much about Ethiopia and ourselves in the past year be safe? Would the editors of quatero, ethiomedia, Nazret, and Ethiopian Review survive the wrath of Ethiopia’s security apparatus?
Aqumada was one of a handful of blogs to publish a list of ways round the stoppage in its post We will not shut up.
Outside the blockage controversy, Ethiopia's surviving bloggers kept up the flow of inventive, opinionated posting – even if the blogging volume was lower than usual.
A view from my porch came up with the most haunting entry of the month with a memory of an encounter with a distraught Addis women in a city café in Coffee for One:
When it becomes noon, I buy us lunch.  I find out that her name is “Seble” and that her father is a butcher in Addis.  I don’t burden her with the details of my family.  We leave the café and walk through the city.  It is absurdly hot; but barely noticed it.  The day had a timeless quality about it.  I can still see her dark auburn hair blowing across her face.  Sometimes, late at night, I can hear her voice.  We talk for hours about everything and nothing.  By the time it starts to darken, I am besotted.
Aqumada wrote about his memory of a more bruising encounter with an Ethiopian woman – his own mother who had just caught him stealing a pacifier from a supermarket. In Judge me by a double standard he wrote:
Now, if you are a non-abesha [Ethiopian] person you should know the deeply ingrained abesha belief that everyone needs physical punishment every now and then. Even if you haven't done anything wrong parents and teachers will give you the occasional whipping as if it is a vaccine intended to boost the effectiveness of the previous shot you had a year ago. But I knew what awaited me was the Ethiopian version of the Spanish inquisition. I pleaded to god through a torrent of blasphemy hoping he would change me into a pillar of salt like Lot's wife but it was the mid 80s and god's network was jammed by requests from Wello and Tigraye. To make matters worse, all the belts hanging in my parent's closet boasted a “Made in Italy – Genuine Leather” imprints (where the hell was China with their vinyl imitation knock-offs ready to stuff my dad's closet who had a special appreciation for matching government enforced khakis with brand name Italian belts). All I could count on to save me intact was my mom's fitness which I figured would force her to quit the beating in less than one hour. The moment we got home I was disrobed of everything, my arms were tied to the bed post and my mom went to work putting hide to skin only to fall short of the predicted one hour mark by about 20 minutes.

author: Andrew Heavens


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Fiji: Table Tennis Team · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

The bloggers at babasiga wants Fijian newspapers to give more coverage to the Fijian junior table tennis team. The team is currently in Australia competing in a regional tournament. ” the players are really professional, always talking seriously with their coaches, thumping the floor, leaping about and are as active as in a Fijian spear dance!”

author: Preetam Rai


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Hong Kong: a city with no memory · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

A dead tycoon’s granddaughter is appealing to her family to stop the sale of a vast private garden, famed as the setting for films such as James Bond movie The Man with the Golden Gun, to a property developer. BigWhiteGuy comments that “Hong Kong is a city with no memory. Whether deliberate or ingrained, the desire to tear down the old — regardless of historical or cultural value — is rooted in nothing more than greed. Such is life in a property-driven market.“


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Hong Kong: Why joining the rally? · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

This year many bloggers explain why they still joined the July 1st marches in Hong Kong even the agenda was not very clear.  Duimanpark says that even though universal suffrage is impossible under the existing political situation, he continued to demonstrate for it (zh).  HungOneBean in InMediaHK describes people who joined the rally as Sisyphus and democracy was like the rolling stone (zh). Glutter says she went out “because it's a beautiful day and it's a good day to walk with a few hundred thousand people who believe in freedom“.


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Hungary: Hollywood Stars Wanted · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Paul of Further Ramblings of a N.Irish Magyar writes about the Hungarian Tourist Board's creativity: “Hollywood stars” are sought “for an ad campaign to popularise Hungary. […] So, this weekend’s question: If you could choose one Hollywood star to promote the delights of Hungary, who would it be and why?”

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Iran: Discrimination & Women · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Dokhtare Danshjo says discrimination against women starts from Iranian Constitution where man was named as the head of family and woman as take caring nurse for her husband and childern. This blogger adds even if a woman becomes Foreign Affairs Minister, she needs her husband's permission to leave country or to get a passport (Persian).


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Iran: Prostitution · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Negah says specialists who are living abroad, have no idea what is going on in Iran and they can not be helpful to talk about women situation in Denmark, Thailand or Nederland. The blogger says condom was considered for many years as a luxury product, prostitution is everywhere, sex and love relations are considered as criminal acts. The blogger adds many old people  marry with teenage girls in Iran (Persian).


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Iran: US-Iran Talk · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

The Spirit of Man thinks US government does not understand who the Leader in Iran is. The blogger writes  while supreme leader of the regime says NO to the US-Iran talks, Bush's press secretary Tony Snow says that Khamenei's response is not official and does not have any official value. But I can say this to US government's Tony Snow that, when Ali Khamenei says NO, it is NO, it is official.


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Iranian Treasure and Ganji’s Ideas · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

The Chicago Tribune recently reported that a US federal judge had rejected a key defense by the University of Chicago in a lawsuit brought by US survivors of a 1997 bombing in Jerusalem seeking the auctioning off of Iranian treasures (ancient tablets) in the University's collection to pay compensation on the grounds that Iran is a state sponsor of terrorism. The tablets are part of a very large administrative archive from the reign of the Achaemenid king Darius I, covering a period of about 20 years around 500 B.C. Before these tablets were found our understanding of the Achaemenid empire depended mostly on external sources. Several bloggers have started cyber campaigns to try to prevent their forcible sale.
Another Military Coup
Jalil Doostkhah, former Professor in Isfahan and blogger,  says we should make our voices heard and ask for the return of our cultural heritage after 70 years in the USA. He adds we do not need your dollars for democracy we know how get back our freedom (Persian). He even compares this act to US-backed 1953 military coup against Dr.Mossadegh, Prime Minister who nationalised Iranian oil. The blogger adds
This is a new military coup of US against Iran and this time directly against the entire Persian cultural heritage! It should be stopped.
Letter to USA Supreme Court
We learn in Iranshenakht blog that two Iranians, writer Shokooh Mirzadegi and Dr. Esmail Nooriala wrote a letter to the Supreme Court Judges concerning this affair:
There are actually two points in this legal action that deserve special consideration. First of all, in the words of the US President, we should not punish the Iranian people for whatever the Islamic regime of Iran is doing on the international arena. This is a nation kept under horrendous captivity that needs international sympathy rather than punishment. Secondly, plundering this nation’s cultural heritage, especially by taking them from their safe public and educational holding places in museums and universities and giving them to private individuals should be consider as a crime against the cultural values of the whole civilized world.
You're Taking Whose Treasure?
Dr. Reza Moradi Ghyasabadi shares his pain about this affair. He says
I am not lawyer and I do not understand international law but I know that throughout history my country has been blighted in the name of legitimate or illegitimate laws.
The blogger writes that these ancient tablets talking about human rights and social security for workers have been in captivity for 70 years in the USA. After 2500 years we are still proud of our ancestors and we had nothing without their efforts (Persian).
In Fanous, a collective blog, we read that there seems to be no importance given to the Iranian nation – This treasure is not just Ahmadinejad‘s or Khamenei‘s heritage…. it seems beyond USA borders human rights don't mean anything! (Persian)
Several bloggers have talked about another kind of treasure: freedom. Akbar Ganji, dissident journalist, has been in Europe for a while to receive various prizes including Golden Pen. He seized any opportunity to give an interview and share his ideas about democracy. A few bloggers discuss Ganji's ideas.
Everything has a cost
Aseman Hameh Ja Abi Nist says Iran has a very negative image in the world. If we want to change our photo on our identity card and show other nations that Ahmadinejad, Ejehi (Minister of Intelligence)… do[es] not represent Iranian nation we should make effort (Persian). He goes on to say
As Ganji says everything has a cost… we should back Ganji’s idea and try to present a new image of Iran to the rest of the world.
Three days hunger strike
Mizegerd Yek Nafare backs Ganji's idea of a three day hunger strike to attract world attention to political prisoners. The blogger adds Ganji has given the Iranian Government ten days to government to free Asdanloo, bus-workders union leader; Mosavi Khoeini a former deputy in Parliament and researcher Ramin Jahanbegloo. The blogger says  if they do not  get out of prison in ten days, Iranians should go though a three days hunger strike, as Ganji proposed. Ganji will do that in front of United Nations headquarters in NY from 13 to 16 July (Persian).


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Kazakhstan: Media Wars · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Leila translates a post about the debate over media regulations in Kazakhstan that argues that societ needs protection against abuses of the truth by journalists.


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Kazakhstan: North of Rainbek · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Ben Paarmann says that by focusing on the boom in Almaty, journalists paint an inaccurate picture of Kazakhstan.


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Kyrgyzstan: Squatter Protests · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Yulia translates a post on squatter protests in Kyrgyzstan that urges the Kyrgyz government must avoide making decisions that could encourage further demands.


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Latvia: U.S. Visas For EU Members · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

All About Latvia highlights a contradiction much talked about in the EU now: “Citizens of Britain, for example, can travel to the U.S. without any visa, while citizens of Latvia cannot. Yet, citizens of Latvia can travel to the U.K. visa free. That simply does not make sense.”


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Liberia: Child soldier · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Bazungu Bucks, on a hot night in Pittsburgh, sees for himself the effects of the Liberian war on a former child soldier, when someone lets off a string of firecrackers.


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Myanmar: Better Than Sanctions · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Chlim01 points to a friend's blog that argues for more economic involvement in Myanmar instead of sanctions.


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Nigeria, UK: Freedom of speech · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

UKNaija makes a comparison between the loss of freedom of speech in Britain, where he lives, and Nigeria, where he used to live. He also mourns, unexpectedly, England's exit from the World Cup.


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Pakistan: Exploring the Kelash · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Shirazi writes on the Kelash, their culture and religion. “The Kelash are called Kafirs (infidels) and their land is known as Kafiristan. Between the 13th and 16th centuries the Chitralis gradually subdued the Kelash.”


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Pakistan: Visa ease · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Pakistan seems keen to build the image of a tourist and investor friendly country. Metroblogging Islamabad says “The new visa policy announced here Friday allows Pakistan's missions in 175 countries to grant visas. It also envisages promotion of travel and tourism between Pakistan and India.”


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Poland: The Polish Pro Corruption Party (PPCP) · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The beatroot writes about a Polish “lawmaker (law breaker)” whose party “led the crusade against political corruption” and who, despite this, was caught falsifying 1,700 names on her electoral sponsorship list. The beatroot is now considering starting “the Polish Pro Corruption Party (PPCP)” and having this politician head it.


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Poland: Unemployment · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The beatroot looks at unemployment figures in Poland.


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Romania: No-Water Hours and Garbage Days · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Romerican writes about the “garbage day” and 48 waterless hours in Brasov, Romania.


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Russia: Metro Photos · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

W. Shedd of The Accidental Russophile posts a link to a collection of unique photos of the Moscow Metro by LJ user russos: “He makes a point to say that he won't answer questions about where his images are made, or what they specifically might show. He also adds that he doesn't have problems with the police (and he won't explain why) – but he does have problems with passengers who stick their nose into his business.”


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Russia: Vladimir Putin Mini-Roundup · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Alex(ei) of The Russian Dilettante's Weblog writes about what Vladimir Putin is doing to Russia and what could be done to Vladimir Putin. Vilhelm Konnander reports on “Putin's power purge” that wasn't. Sean Guillory writes about “Putin A” and “Putin B” and other theories of Russia's development. Yuri Mamchur of Russia Blog posts a link to a much-discussed video of Putin kissing a little boy's belly in the Kremlin. The revived RUBLog (aka Travel Russia!) notes that 7,382 internet users are mystified by the kiss enough to ask Putin why he did it; the president may answer the question on July 6.


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Russia: Wine Shortage · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Megan Case writes about the effect the current foreign-made wine shortage in Russia is having on her life: “When wine started disappearing from the shelves last week, we were unconcerned. Kostia’s theory was that it was all bought up by high school graduates preparing for the all-night graduation party last weekend. […] But now all of the shelves are bare, waiting for the new import tax stickers to be printed, and we’re forced to drink beer.” Vilhelm Konnander explains the situation.


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Serbia: Pop Culture Appearances · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Rachel of Pustolovina: Adventure in Serbian lists a couple of Serbia's pop culture appearances.


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Somalia: U.S. foreign policy · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Ainashe.net recommends an article on AntiWar.com about the failure of U.S. foreign policy in Somalia, and how it led to the emergence of an Islamist regime there. “It is a good read,” the blogger writes.


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Somaliland: Is the Army Fit? · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Ahmed Quick, at the Voice of Somaliland Diaspora, asks if the government of the emerging democracy of Somaliland has given enough thought to the state of the country's armed forces.


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South Korea: Korean Folk Village · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Lawson from Frog in a well visited a Korean Folk Village near Suwon and had some very delicate observations of what were included and excluded. The discussion is related with “the conflicting goals of wanting to celebrate the rich culture of the past (a matter of national pride) and preserve accurate or “authentic” representations of that culture. “


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South Korea: One Big Union?  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

James in two Koreas reports that three automobile companies: Hyundai, Daewoo, Kia company just chose to join the Federation of Korean Metal Workers Trade Unions under the Korea Confederation of Trade Unions. “The move is expected to bring big changes to labor negotiations between union and company management, allowing each labor union to raise questions about the industry’s overall problems. In addition, temporary workers, who have not been allowed membership in most company-wide labor unions, will be accorded the rights of union members“.


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Sri Lanka: Getting drunk, peace and football · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Days go by… on the kind of peace Sri Lanka needs. “I spent the last weekend being too drunk to worry about the happenings of this country and it felt damn good to be free. I spent the last weekend wondering how two Latin-American football giants could not make it to the Finals. This is what every Sri Lankan needs, wants and deserves. Peace, peace of mind and a place they call home; Sri Lanka.”


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Syria: Prof. Aref Dalileh is Dying! · Global Voices
Yazan Badran

As Ammar reports,
Sources are reporting that Aref Dalilah’s health is failing quickly and that he is liable to collapse at any given moment. Prison doctors have reportedly recommended that he be subjected to a variety of tests and scans, but, so far, prison authorities have not responded to their demands.
Prof. Dalileh is one of the most well-reputed economics academics in the Middle East, he was a major idol in the Damascus-Spring movement in 2001, was arrested then by the Syrian authorities and he's serving a 10 years sentence in jail since then.


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Taiwan: conservation of Hansen disease hospital · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Yang in Esouth blog reflects upon a rally to conserve a Hansen disease hospital from being demolished and replaced by a giant metro train factory. The issue has unveiled a hidden history of the city, the disease and the people. She is touched by the demonstration as the participants came together and transgressed the existing political boundary of blue and green (zh) .


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Ukraine: Political Mess and Party of the Regions · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

LEvko of Foreign Notes posts two updates on Ukraine's political mess and the role of the Party of the Regions in it. Adrian J. Erlinger of Leopolis sums it up: “Fire them all.”


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Argentina: Los Pichiciegos · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Posthegemony reviews Los Pichiciegos, set during the Falklands/Malvinas conflict, by Argentine author Rodolfo Fogwill.

author: David Sasaki


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Barbados: Political party list published · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Barbados Free Press publishes what it believes to be the first “comprehensive listing of links to all official websites of Barbados political parties, elected representatives and candidates,” and invites others to copy or link to it.

author: Georgia Popplewell


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Bermuda: New classified ads site · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The Limey doesn't hold out much hope for a new Bermudian classified ads site.


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Bermuda: Zero-carbon housing · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The latest entry in the Limey's Open Mike series raises the issue of “zero-carbon housing” and its appropriateness for Bermuda.


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Burkina Faso: Artist paints mutilation · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Via Black Looks, Joe Pollitt's African art blog showcases paintings by an artist from Burkina Faso whose work is challenging people to look at the reality of female genital mutilation.


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Burkina Faso: Taxi fair · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Missionary blogger Keith at Under the Acacias introduces a day in the life of a taxi-driver in the capital, Ougadougou, asking: “If you as a rich tourist can easily afford the extra 10p that may help buy the driver's children's dinner, should you worry if he charges you extra just because you are white?”


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Cambodia: Aids Awareness · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Cambodia is mobilising gay men to help raise awareness about AIDS. Cambodia has one of the highest infection rate in South East Asia. Vutha in Cambodia has more details.


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Cambodia: Saving heritage · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Andy Brouwer in Cambodia is talking about an innovative effort to prevent the looting of historical artefacts. “In my view, Heritage Watch have come up with a brilliant idea to educate young Cambodians on preserving their heritage. Not exactly a subject that springs readily to the minds of children, but wrap it into a storybook, illustrated by the Cambodian artist Nhek Sophaleap, and If the Stones Could Speak, should be a winner.”


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Caribbean: Summer reading · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Over at BlogHer, Caribbean editor Karen Walrond encourages readers to explore the world of Caribbean literature.


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China: Beijing earthquake · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Yesterday (July 4) an earthquake (5.1 Richter scale) occurred in Hebei region. Zhang blogs about his 2 seconds earthquake experience and wonders why China earthquake administration did not forecast it (zh).


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China: Body check up · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Makzhou in Human-error processor blogs about his experience in body check, his package was 275 yuan (around USD35) and there was a long queue. During his body check, he found out that the hospital only received 10% of its revenue from the government (zh).


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China: pollution of the long river · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

ESWN blogs a series of striking photos from BBS wenxue city on the pollution of the long river,  also known as Chang Jiang and Yangtse River.


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Colombia: Blackface at Bogota Pride · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Andrés Duque has a thorough summary of pride parades from around Latin America, including a disturbed observation of the use of blackface imagery in Colombia.


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Development: Is Africa Poor? · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

“Who says Africa is poor?” writes The Other Side of Africa, challenging Africans to “wake up” from their brainwashed state, into which they have been persuaded by the West.


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Estonia: Mixed-Heritage Citizens · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Giustino of Itching for Eestimaa writes about what it takes to become “just Estonian”: “I recall standing in Tallinn Central Hospital looking at the list of maternity doctors on the wall, and seeing either Russian surnames with Estonian last names (Olga Sepp) or Estonian first names with Russian lastnames (Pille Ivanova). I had to wonder, at what point will the established caste of non-mixed Estonians determine that these people – most of whom are bilingual – have become ‘just Estonian'?”


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French DOM/TOMs: Sarkozy-Led Convention · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Jean-Claude Halley from Guadeloupe Attitude posts (Fr) an invitation to an upcoming convention on the issues of French overseas departments and territories (a.k.a. DOM/TOMs) organized by controversial French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy and his UMP party.  The invitation enumerates issues faced by the DOMs including  unemployment, discrimination, social tensions, inadequate housing, discrepancies with continental France and Sarkozy's pet issue, immigration.

author: Alice Backer


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Hong Kong: July 1  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

A citizen reporter from Taiwan blogs about his experience on the July 1st demonstration this year in InMediaHK. The writer has joined the July 1st rally for three years hoping to find out what is the meaning of citizen movement in Hong Kong and the substance of local social movement apart from universal suffrage. He observes that the demonstrators had strong sentiment against the bureaucratic government but the “anti-” stand may result in an “dis-identification” process (zh).


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Independence Day: MLK mix · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

UK-based music blogger Soul on Ice posts a link to a mix of Martin Luther King's “I have a dream” speech against a background of tabla drums in honor of Independence Day, commenting: “African America wouldn't be celebrating anything if not for this great man.”


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India: The rains in Mumbai · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Dina on the rains in Mumbai. How everything we had known about the rains has changed after the downpour last year. “But we never feared it. We sort of knew it would happen at least once through the monsoons, and in that knowledge we were prepared for all the chaos and disruption that came with it.”


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Indonesia: Corruption and Children · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Indonesia Anonymus might have answer to why corruption is so hard to root out.


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Iran: Abtahi’s father in jail · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Mohammad Ali Abtahi, former Vice President & blogger, confirmed in his blog that his father, Ayatollah Abtahi, and his brother are in jail. The blogger says many asked me to know if this Mr. Abtahi who is in jail because of his ideas concerning Hidden Imam is my father or not!Yes he is my father and he had never approved my political ideas and writings (Persian). The blogger adds my father spent most of these 16 days of detention in hospital.


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Iran: X Generation · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

According to Pouya temporary marriages ( Sigheh) in Iran has a 76% growth last year. The blogger says children who are born during this kind of marriage do not have an ordinary citizen's right (Persian). These children do not have an identity card and are deprived of their social rights from their birth day.


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Israel: Mideast Youth · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Jerusalem Gypsy was asked to write for a new blog, called Middle East Youth. She jumped at the chance, not only because she was flattered at being asked to write for it, and having some great moments of being read by mostly Arab readers, but because it was for Middle East Youth.

author: Haitham Sabbah


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Japan and Hong Kong: Free use logo · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Ben Ng blogs about the free use practice and logo in Japan and hope that Hong Kong can take the experience from Japan to balance between intellectual property rights and sharing of knowledges (zh).


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Japan: Geisha performances  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

David Weber from Japundit blogs about the Kamogawa Odori which is a geisha dance performance presented in the late spring in the Pontocho district of Kyoto (with many photos).


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Jordan: Good Night! · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Having problems sleeping? Cannot sleep during the day or are very light-sleepers? Tololy has a bunch of useful tips to help you get a good night’s sleep!


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Kenya: Politics as entertainment · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

African Bullets and Honey writes: “Politics in Kenya is nothing more than a long-running soap opera. In fact, if there is one thing that more democratic government and a free press have brought Kenyans it is a great improvement in the quality of entertainment,” in a post which asks the question: where does the real political power lie in Kenya?


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Lebanon: The Shia and the scapegoat · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Abu Kais writes controversial piece about Shia in general (Lebanon Shia in particular). He said: “When you’re a member of a persecuted minority, you often need a scapegoat to go with your world view. Ever since Shia Islam developed as a quietist branch of Islam, Shia religious scholars have been directing their community as to who to blame for their wretched misery. The list of scapegoats is long, and many of them have indeed butchered and maimed Shias. It begins with Mu’awiya and the Umayyads, and ends with American imperialism and the international Zionist conspiracy.”


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Malaysia:  Unemployable Graduates · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Fruss and Fuss is looking at the numbers of unemployed graduates and comments on where the real problem moght be.


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Manila flip-flops on sex education  · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

Education officials of the Philippines decided to pull-out modules on sex education after the powerful Catholic Church opposed the teaching of sex in schools.
The Philippines has a high population growth rate. Studies from the academe also point out that teens are becoming sexually active at earlier years. The Philippines is also the only Catholic-dominated country in Asia.
Despite the resistance from Church hierarchy, education officials want to continue distributing sex education modules in public schools this year. They agree to temporarily remove the modules to consult more people, including religious leaders, on how to teach the delicate subject to students.
Meanwhile, Senator Pia Cayetano defended the teaching of reproductive health in schools saying this promotes the “general well-being and health of the people.”
Buwahyahman described the Church opposition to sex education as “a kind of medieval thinking that promotes ignorance rather than enlightenment.”
Bishop Oscar Cruz  in his blog, Viewpoints, recommended the following:
“Sex education especially with its human dimension and moral consideration are better left to the parents of the students—the father and the mother themselves giving formational sex education to their boy and girl children respectively.”
Sex education is also a topic in the government’s forum section in its official website.

author: Mong Palatino


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Martinique: Blog Day 2006 · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Le Blog de [Moi] announces (Fr) that she will partake in Blog Day 2006 (August 31st), a day when participating bloggers promise to reference 5 bloggers from other cultures. She also celebrates the 500th comment to her blog and her own 100th post.


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Mexico’s 2006 Elections · Global Voices
David Sasaki

In what has already been a year of crucial and close elections throughout Latin America, one would think that Mexico's day at the polls would be treated by bloggers as just one more game in a long tournament to be followed by major political contests in Brazil, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. But, “just one more game” couldn't be further from an accurate description of the bombardment of online content surrounding Sunday's election, which so far has yet to produce an official incumbent. Bloggers throughout the region, but especially in Mexico, decided that they would play an instrumental part in documenting this year's tightly contested election (ES) and that is exactly what they have done.
Though Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) says that official results won't be made available until Wednesday, Erwin Cifuentes, like many, notes that conservative candidate Felipe Calderón holds a one percent lead over leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) with 98% of the votes counted. Cifuentes, who wonders if the results would have differed had fourth place candidate Patricia Mercado not run, also takes a comprehensive look at English-language press and blog commentary on the elections. (Ana Maria Salazar, by the way, in a post titled “AMLO lost because of Patricia?” believes that “few of those voting for Patricia would have necessarily voted for AMLO.”
As I type, however, it appears that the one percent margin between Calderon and AMLO could be reduced to .64% as Eduardo Arcos explains:
Si se suman las actas de cómputo que tienen inconsistencias la diferencia en el Programa de Resultados Electorales Preliminares (PREP) se redujo a sólo 257,532 votos entre un candidato y otro es decir apenas 0.64% entre un candidato y otro, aumentando el vértigo de estas elecciones aún más.
¿Recuerdan que Luis Carlos Ugalde reconoció que habían dos millones y medio de actas no contabilizadas porque supustamente tenían inconsistencias? pues ahora René Miranda, el coordinador del servicio de informática del IFE, consideró que era válido hacer la suma de las actas que no tuvieron inconsistencias con las que sí tuvieron y no se habían contabilizado porque eso fue lo acordado con los partidos políticos.
En los 2,581,226 actas con inconsistencias, Calderón obtuvo 743,795 votos y López Obrador 888,971 votos. Interesante.
Remember that [IFE President] Luis Carlos Ugalde recognized that there had been two and a half million ballots not counted because supposedly they had inconsistencies? Well, now René Miranda, the coordinator of information service at the IFE, considered that it was valid to add up the ballots that did not have inconsistencies as well as those that did and weren't counted because that's what the political parties agreed to.
In the 2,581,226 ballots with inconsistencies, Calderon obtained 743,795 votes and Lopez Obrador 888,971 votes. Interesting.
Raul Ramirez shows the arithmetic behind the narrowing difference.
Ballots with “inconsistencies” are far from the only contention causing blogger outcry. Many bloggers who registered to vote have first hand accounts of arriving to the polling place only to be told they are not on the voting list and won't be able to participate. Livin’ la vida López, the weblog of Sergio and Emily, an American couple who recently moved back to Sergio's hometown of Morelia, describes voting day with pictures and text:
When we first got to Mexico, Sergio inquired at the local voters registration office if he had to renew his voter's registration. They said no, he still had his card from 8 years ago, and that would work just fine. But when he got to the poll yesterday he wasn't on the list of registered voters. No vote for him. Everyone else was able to vote and got the thumb stamp to prove it.
Jorge Cocompech uploaded a video of electoral officials being lectured by several indignant citizens who weren't allowed to vote at their neighborhood polling station. “How many didn't vote?” asks Cocompech.
Victor Hernandez of the pro-AMLO blog El Sendero del Peje 2006 asks readers to  photograph any polling station where voters were not able to cast their ballots (ES).
The most linked-to controversy of the elections so far seems to reveal more about the uncertain credibility of online media more than the potential voting fraud that many bloggers are trying to dig up. Both El Sendero del Peje and NuestroVoto.org.mx caused quite a storm when they posted photographs of what appeared to be vote fraud by the official electoral website PREP. In each post you clearly see that the official voting results from the polling station did not correspond to the results posted on the PREP website. Then, linked to the story (ES), a commenter named Alejandro posted what he described as the “original photo” of the polling station results, but Arcos realized that this so-called original image was the one that was actually manipulated.
Un Mono Ocupado (A Busy Monkey), the weblog of a political science graduate student in Mexico City, had this to say about the electoral results, or lack thereof:
Si el IFE le da la constancia de mayoría (eso podría ser hasta septiembre), él será el próximo presidente de México y guste o no guste, se votará por él o no, tendrá que gobernar a todos, a los 14 millones que votaron por él y a 106 millones más (entre abstemios, opositores e infantes), así que la pregunta de si estoy de acuerdo es realmente irrelevante.
Sí él gano (y todo parece indicar que sí), el nos gobernara y que bueno que el que obtenga más votos se convierta en el presidente y no quien mejor nos caiga, de lo contrario el margen tan pequeño de victoria (cuatrocientos mil votantes) crearía incertidumbre e ilegitimidad y creo que México no se lo merece.
En todo caso, Andrés Manuel no ha reconocido su derrota, porque todavía no pierde, esto no se acaba hasta que se cuenten todos los votos y existe certeza de que 3 millones de votos no se contaron por inconsistencias en el llenado de las actas. En el caso de mi casilla, un acta fue invalidada y no contó, porque el menso que la lleno, hizo de su letra algo ilegible, pero en ese caso es culpa de todos, del que hizo el acta, de los representantes de partido y del propio IFE por no buscar maneras de evitar errores tan pueriles.
De corazón, viva México, viva la Democracia y la Legalidad.
If he won (and everything seems to indicate yes), he will govern us and, well, he who obtains more votes becomes president, not he who we get along with best. Otherwise, the very small margin of victory (400,000 votes) would create uncertainty and illegitimacy and I don't think Mexico deserves that.
In any case, Andres Manuel has not recognized his defeat, because he has still hasn't lost. This doesn't end until they count all the votes and there is certainty about the three million votes which weren't counted for inconsistencies in the filling out of the ballots. In the case of my polling place, a ballot was invalidated and not counted because the dummy that filled it out had illegible handwriting, but in that case it's the fault of everyone: the person who made the ballot, the representatives of the party and the IFE for not seeking manners to avoid such trivial errors.
From the heart, long live Mexico, long live democracy and legality.
In such a close race, some observers had thought that the vote from abroad could very well play a deciding role in the election's outcome. But the official results, cited by both BlogsMexico (ES) and Mexicans in Spain (ES) would suggest otherwise. BlogsMexico writes:
Se recibieron sobres con boleta electoral de 71 países. Entre los países con más votos enviados se encuentran : Estados Unidos (28 mil 355 votos) España (mil 108)m Canadá (823), reino Unido ( (428), Alemania ( (368) y Francia (309).
Julio Sueco, a Mexican blogger living in Sweden, listed the humble turnout of his fellow countrymen and women in Scandinavia (Sweden – 61, Finland – 18, Denmark – 20, Iceland – 4, and Norway – 19). One commenter says she had no idea Mexicans can vote in Sweden and asks if it's already too late. Sueco clarifies that July 1st was the last day votes could be received from abroad.
While most bloggers are clearly focusing on the tight presidential race, Matthew Shugart has a useful breakdown of the preliminary congressional results. English speakers wanting regularly updates should follow Ana Maria Salazar's Mexico Today and WaPo's Mexico Votes 2006. Also, if any Global Voices readers would like a specific post translated into English, please leave a comment with the appropriate link and I would be happy to do so.


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Nepal: Army and the Maoists · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Maoists, the army and ordinary people at United We Blog! “As soon as Kailash, younger son in the Poudel family, joined the army, threats started coming in from the Maoist party: take out your son from the army or you will be kicked out of the house.”


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Nigeria: Presidential jet · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Chippla takes a look at the case of two Nigerian journalists currently charged under sedition laws left over from colonial times after they questioned the cost of the president's newly acquired private jet in their reporting.


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Pakistan: Blog-o-timewarp · Global Voices
Omer Alvie

I write to you this week from the future. This post which was due about three weeks back is actually being written on time, somewhere around the 2nd week of June. So please don't think this a lame excuse for my procrastination because I actually have discovered an internet based worm hole that time warps me between the future and the past.
I accidentally discovered this time-space orifice after consuming three cans of Red Bull,  one litre bottle of Coke and 8 capsules of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. I found myself hurtling into cyberspace three weeks into the future, which is where I am now, which incidentally, happens to be your present. Have I lost anyone yet? Good, I'm glad you are coming with me on this one.
Now to business. This week's episode of my Pakistan update consists of links that I selected in hyper-speed (which happens to be another advantage of the time-travel phenomena but I digress).
Fountainhead as always writes about what most don't dare address; Jaded presents her wonderful travelogue of Spain (be sure to read the later entries); Windmills highlights the cure for all maladies; Suspect Paki discusses American Ethics (be cautioned that this is an R-rated rant, so children and G.W.Bush must be accompanied by an adult while reading this post); Sami Shah (Karachi's very own actual stand-up comedian) presents the real reasons behind the current works of Karachi Municipality; Glasshouse presents some interesting titbits from Pakistani newspapers (I think he might have meant ‘Tidbits’ but considering that he is highlighting politics, it might actually be titbits); I present my Neoconic revised version of the American national anthem; and finally I would also like to highlight my recent photoblog adventures as evidence of some semblance of my sanity.
I think the above links are sufficient for this week's perusal of Pakistani blog wares. I shall return again with an exciting post very soon. I will now experiment with the time warp (with the aid of large polo mallet) and travel back in time and do a post for GV, in which case you don't have to look forward to it as you probably have already read it.

author: Omer Alvie


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Pakistan: Cremation and Burial · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Metroblogging Lahore on Shamshaan Ghaats – or cremation grounds, and the politics of converting these to burial grounds. “After Independence in 1947, all Shamshaam-ghaats in Lahore were destroyed in wake of departure of Hindus & Sikhs from Lahore. Shamshaan-ghaat is the place where Hindus & Sikhs perform the last rituals of the dead.”


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Palestine: The “so-called” Palestinian · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

It's not only relocating from Gaza to USA, and it is not only her worries about her beloved one's back home, but the lack of news in USA media about the situation in Palestine, yet, the $150 that can “save” a “persecuted Jew” in Russia in the religious TV channel that she came across amidst all this. The “so-called” Palestinian, Laila El-Haddad getting very little sleep.


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Philippines:  Tamagotchi fever · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

In a post tiltled “I am a dad again” the blogger at Notes from the Peanut Gallery talks about how he got hooked into Tamagotchi world after taking care of his daughter's creature for a while.


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Poland: Jewish-Polish Relationship · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The beatroot posts again on the post-WWII relationship between Jews and Poles in Poland, this time reacting to Fear, the latest book of Jan Gross, an author who “will again become a bit of a hate figure here for dragging up an uncomfortable past once more.”


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Polish Blogosphere Update · Global Voices
Jordan & Maria Seidel

With missionary zeal The Poland Pulse blogs about the latest English camps coming to Poland. By no means clandestine, the camp  project to convert Catholic women to a less formalistic Christianity hopes to demonstrate that:
…following Christ is much more than going to church and paying homage to a religious icon.
Now if that ain't taking a swipe at Polish Catholicism (watch out Radio Maria!).
Swipes aside, kicking is king (sorry Jesus) for some Catholics, and boo describes the familial ambivalence of watcing (from a Catholic country) her Protestant team loose to a(nother) Catholic country. Perhaps sympathetic to her World Cup woes, gs says in the comments section:
One fundamental problem with the way the World Cup is organised is that there are many more teams that get eliminated compared to the number of teams who end up winning (1).
But hey, defeat is part of life isn't it? In fact, according to The Real Warsaw, the little (or, little-ish) failure inside each of us needs to rear its head in order for success to be possible at all. So go ahead, awaken the failure within…
That is… unless you live in Poland, in which case failure seems to be mainlined directly into political culture. And looking like failure on steriods, lawmaker Renata Beger was convicted of forging her electoral petition list. Like it was stated, a little failure can prompt positive results, as the beatroot has launched the tongue-in-cheek Polish Pro-Corruption Party with Ms. Beger as its leader. An appropriate motto: “Nothing succeeds like failure.”
That’s the Poland blogopshere update! Until next time – Do widzenia y po widzenia!

author: Jordan & Maria Seidel


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Russia: Shortage of Pirated DVDs · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

In addition to the countrywide shortage of imported wines, St. Petersburg is now experiencing the lack of pirated DVDs, CDs, etc., reports Megan Case: “Considering that Kostia's and my favorite way to spend an evening is to get a bottle of wine and a DVD, our lifestyle has been seriously cramped by Russia's recent attempts to stamp out counterfeit products.”


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Russia: State Duma Deputy’s Journal · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Yevgeniy Roizman, 43, is more than just a Russian State Duma deputy. He is also the founder of Russia's only privately-owned religious icon museum (called Nevyanskaya Ikona, 600 works); has been collecting works of Ural painters (2,000 so far) and is building a museum in Yekaterinburg to house them; is co-founder and ex-president of the City Without Drugs Fund (Gorod Bez Narkotikov); was involved in creating a support network for the regional orphanages that didn't rely on the state money; co-founded a successful jewelry business. He is also an athlete, father of three daughters, and the author of two poetry books. He is rumored to have been involved in criminal activities in the past. He has a website, in Russian. And a blog, also in Russian.
Below are translations of several entries from Roizman's blog, picked almost at random, dealing with his current work as the elected representative of Yekaterinburg region.
http://roizman.livejournal.com/185784.html
A woman we'd helped (arranged pension for her grandson) came by . She brought us pancakes and a can of strawberry jam.
***
http://roizman.livejournal.com/185245.html
Spent half a day working in Artyomovskoye. A neglected town. A few situations have touched me pretty forcefully.
A letter with 34 signatures. Radio plant workers, mainly women, salary around 2,500 [rubles a month; roughly $90). Paid irregularly.
[…]
A [young woman] lived with her husband, bought an apartment. Two small children. Husband's mother moved in. Fights began. At some point, beating occurred. She escaped with children. All sides had their wounds certified. After a year, husband and his mother filed a lawsuit against her. Lawyers recommended and she filed one, too. All three were tried simultaneously. Were plaintiffs and defendants at once. All three are now with criminal record. The girl lives in a dorm with the children. Earns 1,700 [rubles a month; roughly $60). Spends 1,000 [rubles a month; roughly $35] for kindergarten. Husband hasn't been paying alimony for two and a half years. We'll definitely help.
Artemovskiy is a very difficult town in general. Most of the municipal property has been sold very cheaply. To a non-local Armenian. Law enforcement is a mess. […] There's no money at all in the town, and at the same time, there're plenty of slot machines. People are [playing and] losing everything, including their apartments.
[…]
***
http://roizman.livejournal.com/168799.html
The morning started with trouble. An elderly woman came during the office hours. Got overexcited. Went to the bathroom. Locked the door and couldn't get out. We barely managed to set her free.
And her problem is very simple. Energetic young people wearing ties were walking down the streets of Uralmash [a neighborhood in Yekaterinburg], and they were like: “Hello! We represent a Russian-American company…” And they were talking elderly people into buying some massage equipment. And they [forced] the old woman to spend her whole pension on those devices. So we'll be looking for these guys now.
***
http://roizman.livejournal.com/103045.html
The next story is completely idiotic.
Two years ago, there was a fight near one restaurant here. One affluent guy had a beauty of a wife. Another affluent guy had friends from [the former Soviet Union] visiting. And one of these friends liked the other guy's [beautiful wife]. And so he got excited and went over to kiss her. And to keep her from escaping, he grabbed and held on to her breasts, butt and other parts. I don't know, maybe it's their tradition. The husband [was so shocked he] couldn't talk, but he turned out to have a gun. The guest from [the former Soviet Union] turned out to have bodyguards. Shooting began. All received their share. The guest got hurt more than others. But survived. The [beautiful wife] was untouched.
I was already a deputy then. At first, representatives of the guest from [the former Soviet Union] came to me. Asked to interfere. I told them the truth: if someone approached my woman like this, I've no idea how I would react. I refused [to interfere].
Then came representatives of the offended husband. I told them this joke:
- Sayeed, why did you kill my people?
– And why were they throwing sand at me?
And I refused [to interfere].
Then it all got sorted out. These ones didn't want to back up, those ones didn't want to give up. These ones carried money to the cops, those ones carried even more. It seemed as if everyone was content with the situation. And since my nerves aren't too strong, I stopped following this case.
And today I get a visit from the blond beauty. She's been crying.
- What happened?
– My husband got detained.
– What for? – I ask.
– We ran out of money, – she replies, – and the cops kept demanding more. He told them that there was no more money and they replied: “It's your problem.” He began fighting with them: “You've sucked it all out of me!” And they locked him away. Created unbearable conditions in the preliminary detention center, got in touch with his parents. Began extorting money. Made his conditions even less bearable. Gave him a chance to call his wife, etc.
I say:
- Why have you come only now?
– Before we ran out of money, the cops were saying that everything would be okay…
This is the second case like this lately. The scheme is primitive. The cops involved are the same. Of course, we'll interfere, we're solving the first problem today: to not let them kill the guy in prison.
[…]
***
http://roizman.livejournal.com/81507.html
Many crying people today. A person sits down, tries to begin talking but cries instead. It's easier when it's a woman. But all kinds of things happen…
***
http://roizman.livejournal.com/50872.html
A whole delegation came regarding torture in prison camps. We sat and talked for an hour. Many facts. We can't agree on where to write to: prosecutor general or ministry of justice.
We were shocked to discover the commercial aspect of the torture. They [prison officials] get in touch with [the prisoners’] relatives. They set the rate: for a person not to be beaten [to death/near-death] in prison, they ask from 60,000 to 100,000 rubles (approximately $2,200-$3,700). Per year.
All this is taking place in the northern part of the region. Prison camp #62, prison camp #63 and prison camp #55. They are hiding the beaten and the maimed during inspections. Everyone's blaming the head of Ivdel department Sadykov. They think that he created this system absolutely consciously. In addition to ex-convicts and lawyers, there were representatives of a few NGOs. […]


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Russia: Two Beslan Accounts Reviewed · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

David McDuff of A Step At A Time compares two recent – and very different – English-language accounts of the 2004 Beslan tragedy: The School, an article by C.J. Chivers, published in the June 2006 issue of Esquire (bootleg version‘s at PravdaBeslana.ru site), and the book by a Hoover Institution's scholar John B. Dunlop, The 2002 Dubrovka and 2004 Hostage Crises.


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Saudi Arabia: Child Molestation · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

Farah talks about child molestation in Saudi Arabia. She wonders: “What's more is what such deprivation leads to later on in life. Likewise, living in a society fixated on honor and pride, everything goes unrecorded. The innocent lives it blemishes, sometimes even rips apart.. silently. Not a word to be said. Not a thing to be done.
Child molestation is silently yet very swiftly taking our little boys away from us, and what are we going to do about it?”


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Serbia: Mobile Phones in Kosovo · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Wu Wei writes about what it was like to be a mobile phone consumer in Kosovo and reports that the situation may soon change for the better.


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Serbia: Photographic Film on Serbia in the 1990s · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Viktor of Belgrade Blog posts a film by journalist Nadezda Milenkovic, which “consists of pictures by Goranka Matic, one of our best photographers, showing Serbia in the nineties, and the voice you hear is Slobodan Milosevic and his twisted view on the world (that's why i didn't bother translating). You will see scenes from the Belgrade streets during the demonstrations and protest against the regime, and some faces from Belgrade who in their fields contributed to the fight against the tyrant's rule.”


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Singapore: National Day Message · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

mrbrown in Singapore is calling for Singaporeans to contribute to his “I am Singaporean” meme. The blogger says “If you like, you can record your own version of “I am Singaporean” and post it on your blog, and leave a link in the comments in there. You can also tag it iamsingaporean and entitle it “I am Singaporean”.


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Sounds of Africa · Global Voices
Obi

As you read this the World Cup is in it's Semi Final stages with Italy knocking the host Germany out.  So far it has been a wonderful festival of football with heroes created and reborn.  Ghana made it to the last 16 and made all of us proud.  Other African countries, notably Ivory Coast, played good football.  I can't remember a World Cup like this and we have to thank the Germans for their excellent hosting. South Africa 2010 bring it on.  Welcome to my twelveth African music roundup where I examine and highlight some of the digital chatter about African Music.
Fox of FoxOnTheRun drops a post about a twenty-year old memory and a changing neighbourhood:
“The jerseys represent a who's who of international soccer and national colors. as dusk settles in – the social scene moves to the parking lot. ghana has made it through the group stage. the spirit is lively. an african summer party in the central ohio suburbs -where only the upper can afford to live. the alien music from the canal st kiosks re-appears. all the current sounds in african rap, dance hall, and reggae are represented. man this city has changed.”
thursdayborn of The Hiplife Complex writes about HipLife videos on youtube.com. Discussing a classic cut by group VIP, “Ahomka Womu”:
“VIP's classic cut, “Ahomka Womu,” one which you should definitely know about. The song combines old school highlife in a really tasteful way, making it one of the biggest tracks in the last few years. The first couple verses of rhymes are dead-on with catchy phrasing. A relatively interesting video, especially near the end when the trio of rappers/singers have a 70s flashback moment complete with matching suits and afros.
The majority of music video directors in Ghana stay away from ironic or conceptual themes. There are some notable exceptions, though.”
Stella Noir of Through the Dawn of the soul talks on the Cape Verde artist Sara Tavares, listing her current tour schedule:
“She is of Cape Verdian Descent but lives in Lisbon, her music is a fusion of her African/Portuguese roots she'll be coming to Toronto 11th of July and i'll be sure to check her out!!!”
After searching for and listening to a few tracks I agree with Stella.  Great music. Stella has provided a link to an online interview and music video.
thursdayborn posting on Awesome Tapes from Africa reviews an Ali Farka Touré tape, dropping three mp3s from it.
“Ali Farka Touré was perhaps the most influential and widely celebrated African musician in history. He adapted his ancestral music to the 6-string guitar. The results are brilliant. I won't say much more, there's been more than enough written on Ali in the last while. I'm too lazy to link most of it here, but you can get a good start with NPR's tribute piece and Banning Eyre's Village Voice obit.”
As stated in the quote NPR and Banning Eyre have online audio tributes of the great man so fire up your audio players.  RIP, Ali.
Matilda Egere-Cooper of Harowo writes about a recent London concert by Somalian Hip Hop/Soul Artist K'Naan and explores his history:
“Backstage at Cargo, a club in east London, K'Naan is having a reflective moment. “There's a lot of Somalians who've been out and introduced to the world, but not in the right way,” he frowns. “Whenever a piece is written about Somalia or a struggle within Somalia is shown on film, television, news or papers, it is struggle minus dignity. They don't know how to attach dignity to our struggle, but we do.
And so I think, ‘if no one is going to do this, I'm going to do this’.” In a few moments he'll back up those words, using hip-hop to articulate his experiences to a mixed crowd of English rap fans and Somalian kinfolk, many of whom jump around and dance with pride as they sing along to traditional Somali folk songs, bass-heavy party-starters and, finally, the electric anthem ‘Soobax’.”
I have seen K'Naan perform and he is a very engaging artist. She goes on to talk more on his campaign and his views on the World. Engaging read.
Dacks of  The Abstract Index talks on a DVD of Ethiopian legend Mahmoud Ahmed:
“He's sounding as good as ever, over 40 years into his career and still with silky smooth phrasing and good breath control. The band is pretty game, too. There's no acid rock guitarist of course, and the mix is pretty hands-off, but there's a pretty tight horn section and the drummer gets nice and insistent about half way into the set. Ahmed has tons of charisma – in a gentle, mature way – to get the crowd going by the third song. With such a strong Ethiopian and Eritrean community in Toronto, moving the crowd is no big deal for this seasoned performer.”
Dacks, in another post makes a case for Seattle's Sublime Frequencies label:
“The usual arguments against much of the Sublime Frequencies oeuvre are that artists are never credited, much less paid, when compiled and edited in this way, and that the collages purport to present “authentic” cultural experiences when in fact they are simply different world music constructs than say, big-budget international recordings by the likes of Cheb Khaled, Salif Keita and many others. Furthermore, the mixes themselves are liable to further exoticize the elements it draws from.
I don't really buy into the authenticity argument – I keep going back to Manu Dibango's point of view in his autobiography “Three Kilos Of Coffee” where he discusses audience expectations of African music ‘what do (audiences) want from us? Palm trees on stage?’.”
Don't agree? Get involved.
Frank Chimney of track of the day honors father and son Hugh and Paul Tracey by posting an mp3, from the Luba people of Congo:
“Last night I had the pleasure of meeting Paul Tracey, son of Hugh Tracey the first person to record traditional African music in the 1920s. Hugh Tracey made countless field recordings, released hundreds of albums as part of his “Music of Africa” and “Sound of Africa” collections, and founded the International Library of African Music. Paul is a musician himself and was gracious enough to demonstrate a set of his new African horns as well as the log drum. So today I am re-ruling this gem in honor of him and his father.”
Derek Bermel of inspirations talks on his travels in the north west of Ghana and discovering the music and instruments:
“The Daghati people are split between three countries: Ghana, Burkina-Faso and Côte-d'Ivoire. Their main instrument, the ‘gyil’, is an ancestor of the Western marimba, and is ubiquitous in the society; it is played inside and outside, at festivals, funerals, ceremonies, and church services. Several times during my stay Baaru traveled on foot to a nearby river; there he gathered materials, which he later hand-crafted into xylophones with his nephews Kuulinsu and Maanibe.”
Obi of soul on ice writes about a recent london tour by the Senegalese group Daara J:
“The house was hyped by the time Daara J came on. They launched straight into their material with the tune “Bopp Sa Bopp”. Heavy bounce tune and in no time we were jumping. They brought everything to the stage and Fadda Freddy was soon belting out the soulful backing. and boy could he sing! and strum a mean guitar string which he did for an acoustic version of Marley “No Woman no cry”. Definitely a strong reggae/dancehall influnce on the Senegalese scene.”

author: Obi


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South Africa: Zuma to sue press · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Yebo Gogo disapproves of the move on the part of former South African deputy president Jacob Zuma to sue media outlets over coverage of a rape trial at which he was acquitted.  This, the post says, could produce a “dangerous chilling effect that could scare some outlets — namely those without hefty budgets — to not pursue the wrongdoings (or alleged wrongdoings) of powerful public officials.”


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Sri Lanka: Peace and War · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Moju on women in Sri Lanka waging peace. “WE, the women of Sri Lanka, Singhalese, Tamil, Muslim and Burgher, irrelevant of race, caste, creed or religion, start our battle to wage peace against war.


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The Global Voices Show #3 · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The third episode of the Global Voices Show is here! In this edition we feature excerpts from the following podcasts:
PodView (Podbazaar) (India)
Viloria.com Pinoy Podcast (Philippines)
Tango City Tour (Argentina)
Beyond the Wall (Israel)
Trinidad & Tobago Computer Society Podcast (Trinidad & Tobago)
Arté Radio (“Foot au Sénégal”) (Senegal)
iSummit '06 (Brazil)
Mr. Brown Show (Singapore)
Arté Radio (“Chanson Au Mali”) (Mali)
This episode of The Global Voices Show is available in the following formats:
– MP3 (118:37 min; 13MB)
– Enhanced AAC (18:37 min; 10MB) – with embedded images and links. For iTunes and owners of later model iPods.
You can play all of these directly from this page by clicking on the “Audio MP3″ and “Audio M4A” buttons at the end of this post.
Or subscribe using any of the following links:
MP3 (all Global Voices podcasts) – RSS | iTunes (podcast page) | iTunes (direct subscription link) | Odeo
AAC (Global Voices Show) – RSS | iTunes (podcast page) | iTunes (direct subscription link)
Also featured on this show are the following music tracks: “Roots Fi Cool” by Babylon Burning from the album Knives To The Treble , available from Magnatune; and “Thalassa” by Solcarlus, from the album Primarius, available from Jamendo.com.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | RSS


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Tunisia: Lives in Debt · Global Voices
Haitham Sabbah

MMM is amazed on how many Tunisians live their whole lives in debt. The average Tunisian spends his whole life sinking deeper and deeper in debt, trying to pay back his dues until his dying day, in more occasions than not leaving a burden for his children to carry on after him.


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Ukraine: Bad News For Ukraine’s Orphans · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Cristin of the Ukrainian Adoption Blog writes that due to heartless red tape, those willing to adopt Ukrainian children should better consider other countries: “If you aren't already completely committed to Ukraine, now is the time to look around. If you haven't even started the dossier process, do not start unless you know going in that it will likely be at least a year or longer before you travel. I'm crying inside for all the orphans in Ukraine. Their chance for a family is ticking away. The only hope now is political pressure.”


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Uruguay: Art and Feminism · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Ani has an article about “art and feminism in uruguay”.


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US, Caribbean, Africa: Anglicanism under fire · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

“I feel the American church leadership is far more in tune with the spirit of love and acceptance than the churches in Africa and the Caribbean, or even the English church,” says Trinidad-based Jeremy Taylor, as he weighs in on the controversies threatening to divide the international Anglican Communion in the latest of his exchanges with his US friend “Roger”.


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Venezuela: On Again Off Again Primary Elections · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Oil Wars pleads to Venezuela's opposition candidates that they soon make up their mind over whether to hold primary elections or not.


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Africa: Lessons Learned from Mittal Steel · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Lessons drawn by Le Pangolin from the recent acquisition by Indian-owned steel company Mittal Steel of European-owned Arcelor (Fr): ” Economic actors of developing countries can really change the world if they are so inclined. (…) The West is  not invincible.”


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African Union: Leaders criticized · Global Voices
Luisetta Mudie

Eddie Cross, guest-blogging at Zimpundit, lays into the leaders who met at the African Union summit in Banjul, Gambia, July 1-2. “We have the spectacle of the Heads of State rejecting the Democracy Charter, refusing to face up to the genocidal activities of the government of the Sudan and complete failure to come to grips with the crisis in Zimbabwe,” he writes.


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Argentina: A Toothless Press · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Ian Mount accuses the Argentine press of toothlessness in its coverage of popular ruling president, Nestor Kirchner.


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Armenia: Contemporary Music · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Onnik Krikorian writes about contemporary music in Armenia. He compares the situation as it was about seven years ago, and notes some slight improvement in the ability of artists to find success without connections and rich sponsors.

author: Nathan Hamm


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Bangladesh: Energy Crisis  · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Drishtipat Group Blog on a response to the energy crisis in Bangladesh, that may have the answer. “Iqbal Quadir mostly known among the connoisseurs on global economy as the founder of Grameen Phone establishment has teamed up with the renowned inventor Dean Kamen to venture in to producing a high efficiency, environmental friendly machine that can generate enough power to sustain the needs of a small village.”

author: Neha Viswanathan


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Bangladesh: Muslim in America · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying on being a Muslim Immigrant in America. “Even though I have spent most of my life in America I still carry the weight of being an immigrant and a Muslim in post 9/11 America. After 9/11 my loyalties were subject to question. Suddenly instead of my actions, it was my religion and the color of my skin that defined me.”


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Belarus: “Cultural Exchange” With Taiwan · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

LJ user oldmah has asked (BEL) his online friend from Taiwan to write the words “Belarus” and “Zhyve Belarus” in Chinese script. (The latter means “Long live Belarus” and was the trademark slogan of this year's protests in Minsk.) The results of this “cultural exchange” are posted on oldmah‘s blog.


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Belarus: 300 Polish Scholarships Not Enough · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

EM of TOL's Belarus Blog writes that 300 Belarusian students will receive scholarships to attend Polish universities this year, but – a lot more could (and should, according to the blogger) be done by the EU: “Why is it so hard to find an extra 100,000 Euros and actually provide scholarships for a hundred of Belarusians to study those languages inside the EU? Instead, the EU will slash this money to translate its documents into Latin–this is the sort of creative stupidity, which seems to preoccupy people in Brussels.”


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Bermuda: “An insulting figure” · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Sean Soares calls the $2,840.63 offered by the Bermuda government to the family of a young Canadian woman who was brutally raped and killed ten years ago “an insulting figure”, and reports that the Canadian goverment is keeping an eye on the case.


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China: a homosexual criminal case · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Li yin-he is discussing a criminal case in Shanghai in her blog. The court charged a homosexual person for three years imprisonment in 1984 under Hoodlum crime and rejected the appeal in 2006 by referring to the defendant's sodomy behaviour. However, sodomy has never been a crime in China's criminal law (zh).


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China: Earthquake gives Beijing a wobbly · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Jeremy Goldkorn from danwei describes the blogsphere discussion on Beijing earthquake, it also brings out the issue of the current draft bill which intends to make breaking news illegal: “Any law that hinders the process of sorting the facts from the rumors is a bad law. The law is a lost cause anyway. The information floodgates are already open.“