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African women’s voices this week · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Diary of a Mad Kenyan Woman comments on the predominance of  old men in Kenyan politics and government.  She questions how old fashioned men acting out old fashioned politics  chose John Githongo to head the anti-corruption drive.  Possibly  it was because  they thought he was so young he would not be taken seriously at least not until he had towed the line and  taken “on the widom and habits of his elders”  She asks why Kenyans  continue to hold on to and venerate a group of men  who are in the twilight of their lives and whose
understanding of the modern state and of the deployment of state power is basically a domineering, male-centred, extractive and exploitative one………especially considering Kenyan demographics indicate that our population is young and getting younger. A mind-boggling percentage of Kenyans are under 25: I think, in fact, the majority. Another large group is between 25 and 40-ish: these are the significantly huge wave of new professionals who are globally aware, sophisticated and of whom quite a few have received at least part of their education in another country.
How do we protect our children from racism and bullying in schools?  Pilgrimage to Self is concerned for her daughter after learning from another mother about her daughter's experience of racism and bullying in a school in England.
She had come home with bruises on her legs from being kicked under the table by the bully and she had tried scrub herself ‘white’ at bath time. She is being called Jungle Girl by her schoolmates.   As a result of this, her daughters self confidence has plummeted to zero, she cries herself to sleep every night and is now questioning if she is a bad person because she is brown skinned. She is only nine years old.
Kenyan Pundit points to a feature in  G21 The Worlds Magazine  on “wonderful African writers including Kenyan writers,  Moraa Gitaa on “Maji na Uhai“, Simiyu Barasa on “Kenya: The Drinking Nation“, Joy Wanjiku on “Porn and Feminism“
Back in December, Molara Wood called on Nigerian readers to select one outstanding book they had read in 2005.  Molara publishes 13 reviews by readers
Aqumada comments on the only Ethiopian and probably only African athlete at this years winter olympics, Robel Teklemariam.
Many of us in diaspora were proud to see one of us representing the country of our birth in the winter Olympics. His achievement symbolized the success of the Ethiopian diaspora and the unlimited roles that Ethiopians in diaspora can contribute to the development of their country.
Unfortunately Robel has been suspended for possibly using performance enhancing drugs. We all hope there has been a mistake.
In “Gems from Donor to Justify why Shit isn't Getting Done”  007 in Africa lists some of the excuses given by donor agencies on why things dont get done.
Johannesbury is in the midst of a building boom as people from across the country and from outside flock to the city.  Mzansi Africa complains that ordinary citizens like herself have no say in the many developments that are taking place some of them consisting of hundreds of housing units and which are environmentally unsound.
Our so called green lungs are being threatened, ecologically important wetlands are being destroyed and hundreds of trees are disappearing from a city that is seriously in danger of losing it's reputation as being the largest man-made forest in the world………What's even worse is that there have been a number of environmental whistleblowers who have been taken to court  on various pretexts by the developers in order to shut them up, and these ordinary middle class people are being sued for millions of rands for trying to speak up which is their Constitutional right.
What an African Woman Thinks writes about her experience of blogging and wonders whether  ripping away the layers is similiar to being “naked and not ashamed”.
It's been a decidedly disconcerting experience venturing into the blogosphere, stumbling onto worldviews that are the antithesis of my own. But sometimes I've seen something there, right there where there's a difference in opinion, something that resonates with me that causes me to resist the initial impulse to move right along.
This year Mshairi decides to join in the Valentine hoopla and gives some suggestions on how to set the mood including a list of music, “your object of desire and a box of party toys”

author: Sokari Ekine


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Bridging The Gap… Danish Cartoons Again · Global Voices
Yazan Badran

A very important update on the Syrian Blogsphere was the Bridge the Gap in Blogspace project, started mainly to get bloggers from all over the world a bit closer, bloggers who believe in peace and mutual understanding. Ayman from The Damascene Blog says…
Moderate and open-minded people exist on both sides and the craziness we are now witnessing makes it of utmost importance for them to get in touch and start a healthy and civilized debate. There can be no better place for such a debate than the web, and the flourishing blogging phenomenon provides a very unique opportunity to let people learn about each other and discuss topics of common concern.
While this new project comes as a response to the violent escalation of the Danish Cartoon Row, The Syrian blogsphere continued trying to cope and react to the trauma of the violent assaults against foreign embassies in the heart of the capital, Damascus. Violence occurred when angry protestors to the depiction of the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish newspaper burnt down 4 embassies, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Chile.
Ayman from The Damascene Blog  says he was ashamed, shocked and bitterly disappointed at what happened.
What happened in Damascus today is just shameful. I had expected the protest to be peaceful and civilized. Mobs ran into the streets, shouted and attacked embassies, without realizing the severity of the damage they inflicted to “their” cause and to Islam's image. Mobs controlled the protests today, and people who were there to peacefully protest were shocked and had to hide in their homes. I felt a bitter disappointment.
Ammar Abdulhamid from Amarji points out that…
Each time a demonstration goes awry in Damascus, the event often takes place on a weekend, involving empty buildings and minimal, if any, civilian casualties. Even last year’s incident in Mazzeh, when an alleged “terrorist” cell attacked a UN headquarters, the building had been empty for years, albeit a woman bystander was killed. This and arrested in Beirut as well for involvement in the riots that took place there, not to mention the burning of the Danish embassy there as well.
Suggesting that the regime is the player behind these violent acts,  Ihsan seems to agree on that theory…
While I’m 100% convinced that the Syrian Regime had a hand in what happened. I still cannot understand the concept of being driven like a sheep. To me, those people who were sabotaging and burning the embassies seemed like stupid sheep led by a smart shepherd.
Most Syrian bloggers were keen on stressing the fact that these demonstrations do not in any way reflect the Syrian people. Sinan from MFLS says…
However it's necessary and very crucial for the rest of the world to understand that these actions do not, I repeat, do not in anyway reflect what the Syrian people really believe, or at least what the elite in here believe.
Just like The Syrian Brit, who's a Syrian expatriate, renounces these attacks by saying…
These acts were carried out in the name of Islam, under the guise of defending it… What a sickening farce… I say to all those bastards who attacked the Embassies and burnt flags and vandalized properties… Not in my name… Never…
Yazan sees these attacks as directed at the very image of Syria.
No, they were not attacking Danish or European “out of line” freedom of speech, they were not even taking revenge for the prophet, they were attacking the heart of Syria. The civilized idea of Syria.
And Omar Salaymeh from Earth to Omar calls for all the rational people to work together to save this image.
We, the rational, should work together to show the world that there’s more to Arabs than what they see on television. If I learned anything from the cartoon fiasco, it’s that our views, beliefs and culture are not well known to the west. I think this whole situation could have been prevented if there wasn’t much ignorance on both sides of the table.

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Yazan Badran


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Carl Icahn is Coming to Korea! · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Mingi Hyun on The Asia/Korea Tide reports the fight for control over KT&G, the largest Korean cigarette maker.  Concerns mounted in Korea as Carl Icahn, the famed corporate raider who is trying to break up Time Warner at the moment, raised his ownership in KT&G to 6.6% of the company.

author: Tian Yi


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Iraq: Ashurah · Global Voices
Salam Adil

Mohammed of Iraq The Model reports on how the Ashura festival passed in Baghdad: “For many Iraqis, the wheel of time had stopped 14 centuries ago and it seems that it is the past not the present that is more influential in the lives and mentality of many Iraqis.” and talks about the latest political news: “The good news … was that women have secured their constitutional right in the parliament by getting even one seat more than the originally desired“.

author: Salam Adil


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The Koreans vs. Those From Overseas · Global Voices
Tian Yi

The Asia Pages discusses how to tell a Gyopo (overseas Korean) from a Korean national at the dinner table and elsewhere in Korea.  The writer opines that to deny the difference between the two is to deny one's true identity.


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“A Good Solid Enemy” for Hungary · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Pestiside.hu explains why it wouldn't hurt Hungary to have a foreign enemy or two, and offers a list of potential candidates.

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Afghan Whispers: Hope, Hate & Fire · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Afghan Reality talks about signs of hope for Afghanistan after the London conference. The blogger says:
“Afghanistan Compact will serve as the international community's reassurance in helping rebuild Afghanistan. The document officially agreed upon at the two-day international conference in London starting January 31, 2006 highlights key areas where Afghanistan must rise to the challenge.We must embrace change; there is no other option. It is the option. Afghans have high hopes, which have not been fully met, neither by the international community nor by the government. De-licensing over 1500 NGOs is one first promising step. But, even this is an external reform. Most important, the government must demonstrate the same boldness in cleaning up its own fragile institutions.”
Another hot topic is still the Danish cartoons. Sanjar says :
“I was reading some of the Muslim newspapers and weblogs in reaction to this incident and there were two reasons which were most commonly spread. The more extreme writers believed it’s another manifestation of Western–Christian hostility toward Islam. They claimed the western “Politicians and the media have a tendency to see Muslims only as criminal, anti-social elements and as potential rapists” This could be seen in the irony of the cartoons, where the media connects the most prominent Islamic character with backwardness, bomb and criminality.The other reason was, it’s also connected with a lot of home issues which still remains unsolved in Europe, such as freedom of expression. The traditional European censorship comes to a dead end with the rise of right wing governments in power.”
Pouria Lotfi reports that last week there was a case of an Iranian guy, 27 years old, who had fled to Afghanistan hoping he could get asylum, probably in a third country. Unfortunately he became so disappointed at being unable to find a solution that he set himself on fire and died a few days later in hospital.

author: Fred Petrossian


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Argentina: E-Voting · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Jeff Barry has found some interesting resources about Argentina's electronic voting pilot program last October.

author: David Sasaki


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Argentina: Google Video Replacing MTV? · Global Voices
David Sasaki

The Argentine indie band, Video de Mi Pequeña Muerte now has a blog where they have posted their newest music video, “Cuando el sol prometio volver,” which was recorded using a digital camera and then uploaded to Google Video says Fernando Casale (ES).


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Armenia & Azerbaijan: Talks End · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Christian Garbis discusses the end of talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia, which ended without a deal over Nagorno-Karabakh.

author: Nathan Hamm


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Armenia: Blogosphere Notes · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Oneworld Multimedia has its weekly roundup of the Armenian blogosphere.


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Bahrain: Blood, Sex and Incarceration · Global Voices
Mahmood Al-Yousif

Good. You're paying attention now so let's start this week's roundup with the mundane and progress from there:
Mahmood seems to have been branded a pervert for photographing wild parakeets having sex in one of his palm trees and have chosen to nest in his house's eaves. He's been warned; however, to quit this “bird-porn” business as some think that his site will be blocked by virtually the whole Gulf because of the terms used in that article.
Moving on… On the tenth day of Muharram, the first month in the Muslim calendar, an event that took place over 1,300 years ago is commemorated in Bahrain by its Shi'a population as do hundreds of millions of Shi'a Muslims around the world in remembrance of Imam Hussain.
In Bahrain, the commemorations have morphed into a cultural event that is now not just the usual expressions of grief which is exhibited by processions of men beating their chests. These events are now streamed on the internet, something that prompts Tawfiq Al-Rayyash to suggest calling this festival e-Ashoora.
However, some take this expression of grief to extremes by allowing an incision to be made in their scalp so that a copious flow of blood occurs. This bloody precession is called “Haidar” and is a very controversial subject even among leading clerics and Shi'a Marji’ as Tawfiq Al-Rayyash argues and concludes that this act damages the reputation of not only the Shi'a, but Islam in general and needs to be stopped. Something that virtually all Bahraini bloggers agree with.
Michael Jackson has left the island! Good riddance, Mahmood says and breaths a sigh of relief, one that is echoed by others as well. But from the mundane Jackson to Bahrain's very own under-rated superstar; Abdulhadi Khalaf brings to our attention Salman Zaiman, a progressive musician who has had a great impact on the art and artists in Bahrain as is explored in a wide ranging interview in Al-Talee'a literary weekly magazine from Kuwait.
The main daily newspaper in Bahrain Al-Wasat started a section three days ago highlighting blogs and blogposts. Silly Bahraini Girl is worried on what this might lead to. She argues that: “The fact that Arab media is taking a close look at blogs is alarming to say the least. A few months ago the Information Ministry in Bahrain, for instance, had ordered bloggers to register their blogs with the ministry or else face action, the minute some twit up there realised that there was a new craze called on-line journals. And now Al Wasat is trying to draw attention to bloggers and then the Cabinet and Parliament will hold extraordinary sessions to discuss the matter and we will, I repeat, we will petition the UN to .. to .. I don't know what.”
Haitham Sabbah continues to monitor the international press and asks very valid questions on how they choose to ignore news and takes them to task.
Finally, Mahmood takes on a member of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry who foolishly emailed him an encouragement to boycott Danish products in protest of Jyllands-Posten publishing derogatory cartoons about the Prophet and argues that the Chamber of Commerce should limit its role to taking care of businesses and their business needs, rather than their spiritual ones.
= in Arabic

author: Mahmood Al-Yousif


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Belarus Election Online · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Andrei Khrapavitski has a roundup of Belarus election-related sites. Very few are in English, however.


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Belarusian Internet, Politics and the German Media · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

A Deutsche Presse-Agentur's report said new prohibitive legislation had been passed in Belarus, “effectively banning home access to the Internet.” br23 blog explains why the German agency is “totally wrong” in its interpretation (and, possibly, translation) of the law, and offers a few more clarifications on Belarus, its Internet and politics.


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Bermuda: Land use · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The latest “Open Mike” topic at The Limey in Bermuda addresses ways of making use of vacant land and buildings under the control of the government.

author: Georgia Popplewell


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Bolivia: Road Blockades in Altiplano · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Ben Dangl describes his nine-hour bus ride from La Paz to Cochabamba where he encountered a road blockade in the mountainous town of Alitplano that inspired conversation with a fellow traveler named Kuki.


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Brazil: The New Look for Brazil’s Football Team · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Made in Brazil has a photo of the Brazilian football team's new uniform for this year's World Cup and weighs in: “The only question now is: when is mesh going to make a comeback?”


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Cambodia: Sign Language · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Jinja at webbed feet, web log has some examples of Cambodian sign language. “Foreigner” is signed by making a motion like one has a long nose!

author: Jose Manuel Tesoro


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Caribbean: Cricket notes · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The West Indies Cricket Blog links to an article which looks back at the history of West Indies tours to New Zealand, “including the infamous 1980 series when the umpires made more news than the players”; and to another reporting that cricket great Desmond Haynes is calling for a Caribbean cricket television network to aid the development of the regional game.


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Cayman, Jamaica, T&T: Carnival visitors · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Mad Bull is keeping a close eye on the Trinidad Carnival activities from Grand Cayman. Grenada-based Jamaican Yamfoot is going one better and actually traveling to Trinidad to partake in the festivities.


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Chile: Blog Contest Question of the Week · Global Voices
David Sasaki

This week Atina Chile asks the 1000 plus participants in the Atina Blog Awards to answer the question, “how can blogs help create a more just and equitable society?”


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Chilean Bloggers Making Faces · Global Voices
Rosario Lizana

Because of the internet, many people know each other by what they write, but have never met face to face. That's the connection that Beatriz made and is why she is now inviting groups of eight bloggers to a (free) workshop every wednesday where she gives them the materials to make a mask. The conversations at the workshops have been varied, but they are always linked to the internet and what happens to us with our blogs. Each person lets their creativity run wild. Eighteen bloggers have participated so far and Beatriz hopes to attract 100, after which a public exposition will show the masks which were made during the workshops. Anyone is free to take part in the project by inscribing at Beatriz's blog.
Opinions of Participants:
Yvette: “I took part an experience which could be defined as a catharsis of spirit and of energy.”
Roberto: “And yesterday, as I left the great artistic meeting, I felt like Patrick Swayze in Ghost, looking for Demi Moore. What can I say, two hours of good conversation, concentrated in trying to create something with my hands in the clay that, little by little, took form. I enjoyed the experience from beginning to end.
Nicolas: “A breakthrough. I hadn't been in one, since the times of BBS. Old times. Loved to realize how all are anxious to communicate, to share, to give. For free.”
Nadia: “We participated in a quasi-therapeutic session of conversation, beating the clay, craft-work and, of course, with the topic of blogs floating in the air.”
Carlos Verdugo took photos of the workshop.
Translation by David Sasaki

author: Rosario Lizana


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Cuba: Telenovela review & photoblog · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Zenia Regalado reviews (ES) the new Cuban telenovela (soap opera) “La otra cara de la luna”. And the Que Bola?  photoblog, maintained by retired US doctor Pac MacLaurin, is devoted to photos of Cuba, usually accompanied by interesting commentary.


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DRC: photos · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Adventures of a Retired Armchair Traveller posts two photos of Kinshasa – one taken prior to independence in 1960 and one more recently.


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Ethiopia: relationship with Tony Blair · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Redeem Ethiopia points out the true feelings of British Prime Minister, Tony Blair towards the government of Meles “”We have to try and resolve the situation, the human rights issues, but do so – and I want to do so – in a way that supports Ethiopia.”


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Google and Microsoft in China, Revisited · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Mathew Stinson gives a comprehensive review of the recent discussions in the blogosphere on Google and Microsoft's censorship in China.  He argues that Microsoft is commiting a bigger sin than Google.  Meanwhile, he suggests that “a strong case can be made that even with the censorship, having MSN Spaces is better than the alternative of Chinese only being able to use domestic service providers“.


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Guatemala: GuateFlickr · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Carlos Roberto Cabrera (ES) has created GuateFlickr, a blog which collects the best Flickr photos of Guatemala.


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Healthcare in Romania · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

As his infant daughter is diagnosed with pneumonia, Andy H of  Csikszereda Musings provides a glimpse into Romanian healthcare, and compares some of the approaches to those used in the United States and elsewhere in the world.


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India: Lone at Winter Olympics · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Kamla Bhatt writes on the lone representative of India at the Winter Olympics. “Training and participating at international events has not been a smooth ride for Shiva. To purse his dreams of hurtling down the icy luge tracks he has had to struggle to find sponsors and funds to participate at various events.”

author: Neha Viswanathan


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Indonesia: Education or Infrastructure · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Cafe Salemba reconstructs a debate between one of the posters and a “gorgeous lady” regarding which factor plays the most important role in growth: education or infrastructure?


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Iran: Starbucks or Star Box · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Mr.Behi, Iran based blogger writes “I enjoy the taste and atmosphere of The  Starbucks Coffee whenever I travel outside of Iran. Being an American company, Starbucks cannot open any branch in Iran due to the current US embargo regulations”. But he adds recently he discovered, in Tehran, a new coffee shop called “Box of Stars” or StarBox whose  design of the logo was meant to refer to Starbucks but without completely imitating Starbucks.


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It’s Not Just The Propaganda Department · Global Voices
Tian Yi

The liberal Chinese newspaper supplement magazine, Freezing Point, was recently closed by the government.  The ostensible reason was a long study the magazine published on revaluating the modern Chinese history taught in middle schools.  Letters from China points to a Chinese reader's essay to highlight that the aversion to revisit history is not just limited to government censors, but also shared by the population.


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Jamaica: Marijuana hypocrisy · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Dancehall Blog links to a newspaper article reporting that legendary roots reggae artist Bunny Wailer was booed at an event recently for attempting to address the issue of “marijuana and the hypocrisy with which the plant is treated by the political leadership of the country.” The article concluded that “although Wailer’s words were accurate and timely. . . the people [had come] to party.”


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Kazakhstan: Opposition Leader Murdered · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

James of neweurasia reports that a Kazakh opposition leader has been killed. Again…


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Kenya: Prisons for corrupt officials · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Kenyan blogger,  Magaidi calls for a Kenyan “GitMo” (prison) to house corrupt officials “We need one, since corrupt entities in government conveniently cry out for the blanket rule of law, “innocent until proven guilty” to provide for their freedom as they conveniently await their cronies to set up inquiries to investigate them for 14! years!”


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Kenyan blogosphere Dispatch · Global Voices
Juliana Rotich

The Anglo Leasing corruption scandal continues this week, a video (WMV file 34MB) of a piece done by the BBC is available on kenyaunlimited courtesy of Mshairi and Mentalacrobatics, it is also available on Bittorent thanks to Maitha. The video is of an interview with John Githongo, a former anti corruption official in the Kenya government, Sir Edward Clay, former British High commisioner to kenya, Mr. Joseph Muchemi, Mr. Hillary Benn secretary of state for international development UK. Therein is a recording Mr. Githongo made of cabinet minister Kiraitu Murungi, who was trying to scuttle John Githongo's work by blackmailing him. Watch it to get an idea of the level of corruption Kenya is grappling with. As of the writing of this post, Mr. Murungi is denying the authenticity of the tape, while a former prosecutor Mr. Murgor confirms that indeed, that was Mr. Murungi's voice and in line with his habit of impeding anti graft investigations.[via Nation Media - free subscription]
Ntwiga thinks Mr. Murungi is “playing footsies with reality” and asks some questions that he would need to answer to “deal with the issues at hand”
+ Did you or did you not participate in the looting from the Kenyan people that has been and continues to take place? If so, stand up and face the music.
+ If you did not participate in looting and grand corruption, attempt to present evidence to this effect. If you have no evidence, then state this and claim your innocence. Kenya law maintains that you are innocent until proven guilty.
Kenyanpundit Points out that the focus  right now is on individuals, yet there exists a network of corruption that is institutionalized. In her piece “On Grand Corruption in Kenya”She notes that not enough is being said about ‘the big picture’. She then gives a very thorough and detailed breakdown of  very pertinent matters to the question of corruption, including her thoughts on civic education, “Fact is that voters generally react to more basic concerns whether it is tribe, popularity, fear, etc. (not just in Kenya, how do you explain two terms of George Bush?). ” She also states
…there needs to be a better effort at tying the impact of corruption to their daily lives. Now that you’ve exposed just how much is spent in luxury car, what exactly does the fact that your “bendera MP” is driving a S-500 Merc mean for you as a constituent?
Mentalacrobatics echoes the sentiments of one of the kenyans in the BBC video piece.
About half way through the video of the BBC report with Githongo the TV crew meet a man who tells them, “My vote is my weapon I know what I will do in the next general election. I will throw them out.” Amen. No need for guns and militia for us, I’ve got all the power I need in this voter’s card.
He also provides some examples to illustrate Kenyans’ shift in attitude toward the politics, noting
Politicians in Kenya today should be worried as it looks like the whole country has learnt the art of the poker face and fake smile. We’ve learnt how to do politics. We may tell you one thing and go out and do something completely different. Clever politicians have to keep on their toes as we the public have finally understood our role in this whole democracy thing, you work for us. The sooner you understand that, the better.
Whispering Inn gives four reasons why he does not think much will change after the 2007 elections,  saying “dont bet on change”
Magaidi rants (toungue in cheek) saying “we need a kenyan git-mo” to accomodate the corrupt individuals from the Anglo leasing and goldenberg scandal.
Kenyan Analyst looks at the scandal in a wider context,  in the post “Githongo the man and the secrets” , he thinks “No doubt the Brits and others have their own interestsin this (they always call it “enlightened self-interest”)…” he draws parallels between the githongo story and the watergate break in, where he feels that there are other factors at play.
Bankelele compares the cell phone services of Kenya's top providers, Safaricom Vs Celltel, in the post is also a bit on the Anglo Leasing scandal. He points out that “The day after Finance Minister David Mwiraria resigned, the People newspaper reported that one of the triggers of his departure was that the US Embassy in Nairobi has signalled that it would not grant him a visa to head a Kenyan delegation travelling to Washington DC to attend World Bank talks in February.”
As you can tell, the anglo leasing scandal is a very fluid story, to keep abreast of the developments do visit KenyaUnlimited, a collection of Kenyan blogs.
If all this anglo leasing stuff makes you dizzy, Adrian has a series of beautiful photos of his family's farm in the post Bean harvest in Loitokitok

author: Juliana Rotich


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Kosovo’s Status and Serbian Radical Party’s Position · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

East Ethnia reports that Tomislav Nikolic, leader of extreme nationalist Serbian Radical Party, said that “if Kosovo were to be granted independence, Serbia should declare it to be ‘occupied territory,’ and should seek to recover it ‘by any means possible'” – and that prime minister Vojislav Kostunica had agreed to this action plan. The government is yet to react to this statement. (Vojislav Seselj mentioned in the post is the party's founder and is currently behind bars at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in the Hague.)


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Kyrgyzstan: Chaos in the Mountains · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

James of neweurasia and Gene Daniels of Registan.net have different takes on political turmoil in Kyrgyzstan.


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Malawi: midwife story · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Babycatcher is a midwife working in Malawi who chronicles her daily experiences with mothers and babies in Lilongwe, Malawi….”This morning I found the aunt with the little one wrapped to her back, just a tiny head peaking over the chitengi. He is so frail. I fantasize about watching him transform into a chubby little boy who will run and jump and scream just for the fun of it.”


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Malaysia: Presses Silenced · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Bloggers comment on the indefinite suspension of a newspaper's publication license in Sarawak, Malaysia for reprinting one of the controversial Danish cartoons.  Here's Kenny Sia (who lives in Sarawak), Asiapundit and Jeff Ooi.


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Nepal: Money Needed For Movement · Global Voices
Paramendra

Democracy For Nepal, DFN, talks of the need for the Nepali diaspora to pump money into the democracy movement in Nepal: moral support is not enough. The idea is to launch an organization to the effect.
Those in the diaspora do not have the option to get out into the streets of Nepal, to get beat up by the police, possibly getting shot dead. That is why the diaspora needs to do everything else possible, and money is key. We have to outspend our opponents. We have to outorganize them.
There is also an entry on  Blogalaxy For Global Democracy. Other countries fighting for democracy can hope to learn from the Nepal experience.
A blog is one star. A blogalaxy is many stars. A blogalaxy has many individual and group blogs all interlinked to each other. There are three basic components to power for any democracy movement: money, message, organization. Blogs are great ways to marshall all three. Blogs also make possible politics at the speed of thought. You end up with armchair revolutionaries. One country group could learn from another, there would be much cross pollination in terms of learning strategies, techniques, message honing. Each country group will feel this enormous moral support. The blogalaxy would not be a registered organization, just a communication tool that positively impacts all three power tools, although there might be many registered organizations that are part of it.
United We Blog, UWB, has several pieces of great interest: Images of Protests in Dang, Deserted Voting Booths of Nepal, People Indifferent To Election, Election Day: Kathmandu Silent. The moon throws light, but a bulb that throws light is not the moon. Democracies have elections, but elections are not democracy. Somebody tell that to the dictator king in Nepal.
Samudaya reports from Nepal: Black Day at Basantapur. “After the protest, we meet up with Gagan Thapa. “Four years of brick-throwing”, he reflects, “and nothing has progressed. I've realized that giving two speeches is more effective than two days of rioting.””
Mero Sansar has a video blog on the state firing water hoses at demonstrators.

author: Paramendra


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More of Russian DIY Design  · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Two more additions to Konstantin Dlutskiy's photo collection of DIY design at the Russian Marketing Blog: wedding flowers sold with a discount for loyal customers, and a “Baby” store selling vodka and beer.


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Myanmar: Union Day · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

On the 59th anniversary of Myanmar's Union Day, Dathana posts a copy of the Panglong Agreement, in which the country's several ethnic groups agreed to cooperate to create a federation of partially self-governing states.


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Nepal: Between China and Nepal · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Nepali Notebook on the changing state of relations between China and India -“The postponement of State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan's three-day visit has set off wild speculation over whether Beijing might be abandoning what is perceived to be its steadfast support for King Gyanendra's government.”


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Nigeria: being gay and fear · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Nigerian blogger, AfroHomo continues his memories of growing up gay in Nigeria. This post is on “fear”…….”In my nightmare, I am walking down a Lagos street and street hoodlums attack me with sticks and blows. Finally, they put a tire around me, douse me with gasoline and set me on fire. My mum runs towards me in tears, too late to save me from the flames.”


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Nigeria: Beko Ransome-Kuti dies · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Grandiose Parlour reports on the death of Nigerian human rights defender and social justice activist, Dr Beko Ransome-Kuti…”Dr Beko founded the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights a very vocal and prominent anti-government organization during General Ibrahim Babagida's regime. Being physician, he was a very active member of the Nigerian Medical Association. His last years were spent organizing a sovereign national conference to address some of the nagging constitutional issues in Nigeria”


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Nigeria: sharia law · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Chippla comments on what he calls the “Talibanisation of Northern Nigeria”…………..”the once lively and cosmopolitan city of Kano in Northern Nigeria appeared to be regressing, thanks in no small part to Islamic religious fundamentalism.”


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Pakistan: Marriage and Women · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Metroblogging Islamabad reports “A two-member division bench of the Supreme Court Monday said girls over the age of eighteen have complete rights according to Shariah as well as law of the land to decide about marriages according to their will.”


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Pakistan: Water and Contamination · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Metroblogging Lahore links to a report on contamination of water in the city of Lahore.


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Pavlov, Pavlovskiy and Nemtsov, and the Belarusian Election · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Tobias Ljungvall wonders what really draws certain people into Belarusian pre-election politics. Among those whose real motivations and intentions he'd like to know are Gleb Pavlovskiy, “the Kremlin's own favourite ‘political technologist’,” and Boris Nemtsov, a Russian opposition politician.


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Puerto Rico: The Stones play PR, while blogging grows · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

GuerillaPop posts a report (ES) on the Rolling Stones concert at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico, complete with video and photos. And several bloggers link to to an piece on blogging in a local publication, including Shery (ES), DigiZen (ES), Jonathan Hernandez (ES) and Eugenio Martínez (ES), who's quoted extensively in the article.


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Putin’s Dissertation and Russian Energy Sector · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Sean Guillory looks at Vladimir Putin's dissertation, “Strategic Planning of Regional Raw Material Operations in a Market Economy,” which he wrote as a student of the St. Petersburg Mining Academy in 1997. Stored at the Russian State Library, the dissertation is a hit with the readers. Also, Sean discusses Vladimir Shlapentokh's article on Russia's energy sector.


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Russian Road Rules: Oleg Shcherbinsky’s Case · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

In her latest column, Masha Gessen writes about a court verdict that has caused mass protests in Russia: a driver happened to be in the way of a speeding governor; the governor's car crashed and the governor died; the hapless driver was sentenced to four years in a labor settlement. “The court ruled that the governor had a right to exceed the speed limit because he was in a rush to make it to a previously scheduled event.”


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Rwanda: genocide non-survivor · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Rwandan Survivors posts a letter from a survivor of the Rwandan genocide….”am 26 and I am a genocide survivor. Sincerely speaking, I have got no words to express the genocide. It is something that can end on a political aspect but for survivors, this crime is everlasting. You are called genocide survivor but actually you are not! You just try to move along with others without any basis just like a shot trying to grow up without roots”


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Singapore: Passing On Values · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

In Singapore, Mr. Wang reflects on what values he is passing on to his children, and how.


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South Africa: Absorption Capacity · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

South African blogger, Idland explains the theory of “Absorption Capacity”  which he feels is difficult to understand but is very important….”One aspect of absorptive capacity is a Government's ability to spend new aid in programs that make a difference in people's lives. How can it be hard to spend money?”


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Sudan: Darfur · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

The Passion of the Present points to a report in the NY Times ” Disposable cameras for disposable people…………Meet some of the disposable people of Darfur, the heirs of the disposable Armenians, Jews, Cambodians, Rwandans and Bosnians of past genocides. Look carefully, for several hundred thousand people like these have already been slaughtered in Darfur in western Sudan — and the lives of two million more are in our hands.”


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The Cost of Unification · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Jerome Keating guest-posts on The Peking Duck on the potential social and economic costs of Taiwan's unification with Mainland China.  Without touching on political costs, Jerome points out that the current health care system, the environment and the efficient use of tax revenue in Taiwan will suffer if unification happens.


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The Global Menu · Global Voices
Melissa De León

I am reporting this time from Nanegalito, a picturesque town in the Ecuadorian Andes. Let's see if you can find it in your map! We will report about the marvelous finds in the area in future posts, I promise.
The weekly roundup brings the following news from our blogging food lover friends:
#1
From London, Gastro Chick shares her very own recipe to prepare the “Perfect Mash.” Head over to her blog and find out this well kept secret that finally comes out.
#2
Have you visited BlogHer – where the women bloggers are – yet? They have now a very active “Food & Drink” section where some of the most popular women food blog writers meet and share what they write. Take a look, it's fun!
#3
Directo al Paladar from Spain, writes about three very interesting restaurant guides for Barcelona, Tenerife and Buenos Aires.
#4
Gia-Gina in Italy experiments with baby artichokes and prepares an outstanding salad.
She also explains how to cook with bottarga, which is also known as the poor man's caviar. It is the salted, pressed and dried roe of either tuna (tonno) or gray mullet (muggine.) Her recipe to prepare Spaghetti con Bottarga is delicious and beautiful.
#5
For the love of bread: if  you are ready for some “Spicy Bread Seduction”, do not miss the Naughty Curry's recipe to prepare Cactus Sunset Bread.
#6
From Canada, Sour Patch shares some very interesting news: McDonald's goes blogging!
See you soon!

author: Melissa De León


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Trinidad & Tobago: Carnival costumes · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Nicholas Laughlin spends his Sunday helping build Carnival costumes.


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Tukui-Mekteb Battle   · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Andy of Taking Aim looks at reports on the battle that took place in a Southern Russian village this past Friday, “one of the largest battles seen in outside of Chechnya for a while.”


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Turkmenistan: Rocking the Boat · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

neweurasia reports that Turkmenistan is rocking the boat in the Ukraine-Russia gas deal by threatening to raise gas prices.


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Venezuela: SUMATE Trial · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Miguel Octavio, Alex Beech, and Ana Julia Jatar (ES) all have something to say about the current court case against Maria Corina Machado, the director of opposition group SUMATE, who is charged with accepting a $31,000 grant from the National Endowment for Democracy.


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Venezuela: Thoughts of a Visitor and Chavez vs. Blair · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Mary Ann Swissler posts an email by Judy Brady about her recent trip to Venezuela with the fair trade group, Global Exchange. Daniel Duquenal offers his explanation of the Hugo Chavez-Tony Blair diplomatic spat.


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Vietnam: Missing in Australia · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Royby.com lists down the things he will miss about Vietnam when he returns to Australia.


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Zimbabwe: MDC infighting · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

This is Zimbabwe discusses who might be behind the infighting going on in the Movement for Democratic Change opposition party in Zimbabwe….


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A Near Sighted Attack on The Chinese Way? · Global Voices
Tian Yi

On Wedn Feb 15th, the US Congress will review the roles that US hi-tech firms are playing in China's Internet censorship.  In “Truth, Justice or A Near Sighted Attack on The Chinese Way”, Angry Chinese Blogger gives a comprehensive overview of the issues at stake and the motives at play.


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Africa: football · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Black Star Journal commenting on the state of African soccer writes that it is not the quality of players that is preventing success at World Cup level but the poor quality of organisation...”From governments meddling in the affairs of soccer federations, to federations meddling in team selection, to often lamentable training conditions for players and coaches, to poor youth development programs.”


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Africa; politics v entrepreneurship · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Africa Unchained points to an article by Pat Utomi of the Lagos Business School on the “disproportionate focus on politics within Africa and the relatively tepid interest in entrepreneurship and wealth creation”.


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Africa: women blogging  · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

New blog Ethnic Loft, comments on the numbers of African Women Blogging and points to a roundup on Black Looks “Who says African Women cant blog?” – He also has an excellent photo from Nigeria's Durbar festival in Zaria.


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African Music Roundup #3 · Global Voices
Obi

It's been a fun few weeks with the festival of football that was the African Cup of Nations (congratulations to Egypt the host).  Watching all the footballing talent on display made me proud to be an African.  So we look forward to Ghana '08 and all the beautiful things the Gold Coast has to offer.  It's only appropriate I start this roundup with the music phenomenon that is Ghana‘s very own Hiplife
The Hiplife Complex, who spent a year in Ghana making a documentary on the genre, blogs on the thoughts of everyday people on hiplife and it's effects on Ghanaian youth.
“This guy is worried about profanity in hiplife lyrics and its effect on Ghanaian youth. He gives us a laundry list of hiplife's good and bad contributions to society, making many of the statments I heard repeatedly from a variety of players in the industry.”
The Hiplife Complex concludes his post with a link to Maximus Ojah‘s entertaining and thoughtful insights on Hiplife in Ghana
One of hip hop's best and prolific producers JayDee a.k.a JDilla passed away two days ago.  This is a great loss and his extensive talent will be missed.  rest in peace my brother JayDee.  toddkelley.net pays tribute to the great man on his blog and drops a dope selection of his work on radio.blog.  I couldn't say it any better.
mixtapeshow.net makes a departure from his usual music blog format to present an audio interview Kareem Edouard.  Kareem has made an impressive and educative documentary called Bling: Consequences and Repercussions which explores the deadly trade of conflict diamonds.
“What does this have to do with you? Well, if you’ve watched a rap video in the past 7 years, you’ve probably seen someone that is (probably unbeknownst to them) helping to fuel the conflict diamond trade. If you’ve already seen the documentary, this should provide some more information and background on what the production and whatnot are all about.”
mixtapeshow.net also provides a link to a free 11 minutes download of the documentary.
Negro Please waxes lyrical about Red Hot + Riot, a cd dedicated to the music of Afrobeat founder Fela Kuti,  the Nigerian legend who died from AIDS-related complications in 1997:
“As this album plays, it's funk and jazz blended with traditional Nigerian root music and these contemporary artists singing or rapping above it, I know, without a doubt, that I am both African and American. I feel this music at my core.”
Naija Jams highlights one of the songs off the Red Hot + Riot album, a remake of Fela's hit “Zombie” by Bugz in the Attic and Singer Wunmi.  He gives an interesting background to the song:
“In 1976, the planning of the Second World Black Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC77) was underway and Fela was invited to part of the Organizing Committee.
He soon realized that many of the involved were interested only in lining their own pockets & pulled out, staging a protest performance at The Shrine running concurrently with FESTAC77. It was here that Zombie made its public debut.”
Naija Jams has removed a link to the remake but the song can still be heard on aurgasm‘s music blog.
Continuing on the afrobeat theme SoundRoots did a roundup of the current players on the afrobeat scene.
“Anyone with an inkling of musical curiosity has at least heard of Afrobeat. It's the funk-drenched, politically charged Nigerian music pioneered by Fela Kuti. For some reason, lots of this anti-establishment music tends to be available for free download around the internet.”
SoundRoots has provided links to free downloads on Afrobeats acts like Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra and Akoya Afrobeat
I'll sign out by linking to the sternsmusic.com's African music top 25 chart for feburary '06. enjoy the week.

author: Obi


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Armenia: Deconstructing Yerevan · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Christian Garbis has a further report on the continuing destruction of downtown Yerevan.


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Armenia: Diaruntarach · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Oneworld Multimedia has a report on and photos of Diaruntarach/Terendez, an annual holiday with pagan roots centered on fire.


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Band Cancels Polish Tour · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

The Beatroot writes that a Swedish “death metal” band has decided to cancel its Polish tour, fearing legal action. A precedent was set two years ago, when a Norwegian “black metal” band was charged with causing “religious offense” after a concert in Krakow.


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Barbados: Coral reefs & racism · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Titlayo reports that a yacht owned by US billionaire J. Paul Getty III has destroyed a portion of the coral reef off the west coast of Barbados, but she's even more dismayed at this comment: “Well, man, he got a lot o’ money. He could afford to build back that reef, no problem.” She also posts a follow up to last week's discussion on Barbados’ response to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.


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Bermuda, USVI: At the Winter Olympics · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

The Caribbean Beat Blog notes the presence of Bermudian Patrick Singleton at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino and also the absence the USVI's 52 year-old luge competitor Ann Abernathy, who had to pull out of the games because of an injury.


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Cape Verde: elections · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Yebo Gogo reports on the “too close to call” elections taking place in Cape Verde.

author: Sokari Ekine


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Caribbean: Racism in cricket? · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Trinidadian journalist Vaneisa Baksh joins the debate on racism in cricket going on at the Cricinfo – Wicket to Wicket blog with a susbstantial article which concludes that, while racism certainly exists in the Caribbean, it rarely manifests itself these days in the context of West Indies cricket.


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Caucasus: YC Week Three · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

The Young Caucasus Women project is in its third week, and a roundup of the initial posts for the week can be found here.


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Central Asia: Message to the Music · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Alan Cordova wonders if there is a message behind the music played when various Central Asian teams made their entrances during the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics.


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Costa Rica vibrates with the Central American Music Festival · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

Founded by Costa Rica's Manuel Obregón, Papaya Music began as a joint Central American musical experiment led by the Papaya Orchestra, a Central American orchestra which combined today's modern influences and urban sounds with traditional instruments and rhythms of the Central American Isthmus. The fourteen musicians that compose the Papaya Orchestra come from seven different countries, and every artist brought into the project the music from each of their homes. With traditional instruments and a local soul, the musicians reproduced their homeland's music, from the sacred to the mundane, deftly tying these diverse rhythms under one concept: The Central American World Music. The Papaya Music Project evidences the ethnic and cultural convergence in Central America; where European, African and indigenous influences come together in a musical fusion that not only includes the Papaya Orchestra, but also their own record label Papaya Music and now the Papaya Fest.
The Papaya Fest is more than a concert laden week in San José, it also includes the Central American Music Fest. The Central American Label Festival brought independent Central American record labels to the Costa Rican music stores to increase availability and visibility, and has organized conferences with these same independent labels as well as representatives from Record labels such as Putumayo World Music and the Núcleo Contemporaneo de Sao Paulo to share their experiences in placing traditional music in the world market as a high quality and competitive product. So far it appears that the effort to bring the Central American Music out to the popular audiences has been successful. For this festival there are free concerts planned throughout the Central Valley at major shopping malls as well as inexpensive concerts in downtown San Jose. For less than $2, you can see great quality artists in a one of a kind show.
The main events of the Papaya Fest will take place in Downtown San Jose, right next to the historic metallic school in Barrio Amon. On February 16 the festival starts off with the Papaya Orchestra at 7pm. The 17th is the day for the Caribbean music: Costa Rica's Calypso Jazz Band, Honduras’s garifuna Aurelio Martínez , Costa Rican afro-Caribbean Cantoamerica and Hondura's Guillermo Anderson present themselves at 7pm. Then on Saturday at 6pm the Central American urban music scene takes the stage with Belize's The Grandmaster playing with Costa Rica's Amarillo, Cyan y Magenta, then Panama's Señor Loop, Nicaraguan Perrozompopo and Costa Rica's Gandhi. The Festival will wrap up with Costa Rica's Malpais and all the Central American groups playing together at 6pm on Sunday.
Bloggers in Costa Rica such as Ana, Leo, Analu and Julia Ardon mention the festival and urge others to attend, Jon4th4n tells about his experience buying tickets, leaving his keys inside his car and staying for a Manuel Obregon concert at a popular mall.  S wrote a critique on the name election, considering that the word “fest” has been overused and lacks originality, and suggests “Festival de la Papaya”, a phrase in Spanish, as a better representaton of the great quality of the concerts.
Other blogs mentioning the PapayaFest are Centroamericanto, Vichitex and Senor Loop's very own blog, which also includes a useful Panama Spanish-Costa Rica Spanish glossary.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Czech Red Tape · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Author of the bilingual (English and Belarusian) br23 blog encounters red tape in the Czech Republic and is forced to cancel his trip to Ukraine, where he was to teach a group of Belarusian NGO activists about the Internet and blogging.


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Despite The Missiles · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Michael Turton on The View From Taiwan blogs on the political backpeddling of Ma Ying-jeou, the mayor of Taipei and the Chairman of Taiwan's main opposition party, Kuomintang.  Ma had stated earlier on his visit to the UK that China must remove the 700 missiles pointing at Taiwan before the two sides could negotiate.  He later reneged on that statement.

author: Tian Yi


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El Salvador: Interview with Leslie Schuld · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Tim Muth recommends to his readers that they listen to an interview with Leslie Schuld, executive director of the Centro de Intercambio y Solidaridad.


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El Salvador: Rufina Amaya · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Meg photographs her tour of El Mozote, where a tragic massacre took place in 1981 and remembers Rufina Amaya, a villager who escaped the massacre while soldiers killed her husband, son, and three daughters.


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Escape into Albanian Countryside · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Anna of annasblog shares pictures from a Saturday escape from the capital Tirana to Albanian countryside: sheep, brides, ancient ruins – and modern bunkers, some 700,000 of them scattered all over the country that's slightly smaller than the state of Maryland…


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Ethiopia: Message to the youth · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Ethiopian Politics writes a message to Ethiopian youth asking them not to make the same mistakes as older generations…..”These are the pitfalls my generation has fallen prey to, but you the hope of our new Ethiopia, must avoid at all cost:  · Ethnocentric jingoism,  Intolerance for political dissent, Cultural insensitivity


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Ethiopia: trafficking of children and women · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Ethiopundit reports on the plight of orphan and street children in Ethiopia…


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Ghana: Art and Valentines Day · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Koranteng's Toli writes on the creation of Valentines Day in Ghana and points to a painting by one of Ghana's top artists, Wiz, or Wisdom Kudowor.


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Guatemala: US General on Drug Airstrips · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Dave Pentecost links to a transcript of a speech by US General Bantz J. Craddock after flying over Guatemala to inspect what are believed to be drug airstrips.


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Hong Kong Refuses to Be Sales-taxed · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Hemlock regards the attempt to implement a goods and services tax in Hong Kong as utopian as IMF asking Nepal to restore peace.  For “our visionary leaders can’t do anything that’s in the interests of the community, because we’re not a community.  We are ‘various sectors’”.


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In Defense of Piracy · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Beijing Loafer defends the role of piracy in media-controlled China.  Without piracy, Chinese audiences “would only get the likes of Titanic, Backstreet Boys and Batman with no shoulder exposed, products as mind numbing as the communist propaganda”.  The drawbacks?  Misleading subtitles.


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India: Numbers and HIV · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Lives in Focus  has a feature on the numbers game – “In this audio podcast, Anand Grover, an attorney and project director for the Lawyers Collective HIV/AIDS Unit in Mumbai, India, addresses the gulf between the Indian government’s statistics and NGOs statistics on the number of people infected with the HIV virus.”


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India: Valentine’s Day · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Valentine's Day doesn't quite find favour with the moral police in India says Sepia Mutiny, bringing reactions from around the country.


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Indonesia: Judging Kalla · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Jakartass tries to figure out Indonesia's vice-president Josef Kalla.


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Indonesia: Simulating TV Reality · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Inspired by an Economist article about how the U.S. military hires Hollywood production companies to make their combat training simulations more realistic, Indonesia Anonymus guesses what would happen if the Indonesian military hired local TV soap producers to run their simulations.  One possibility: “There will be a lot of screaming, crying, and cat fighting.”  Read on: the predictions are priceless.


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Jamaica, Trinidad: Curry goat & oxtail · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

“What’s a Sunday dinner without a some Rice & Bean and Curry Goat?” asks Iriepeople.com in its brief rhapsody on the Jamaican dish, which includes a recipe. And on Saturdays in Trinidad Can Cook, Must Cook says “you'll find a lot of people making soup, usually fish broth or oxtail soup.” Her commenters agree – and salivate.


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Korean Going for The Top · Global Voices
Tian Yi

The South Korean government just announced that its foreign minister, Ban Ki-moon, would run for the UN Secretary General post.  Fying Yangban discusses the importance of Ban securing backings from other Asian Countries, while Oranckay reminisces on the announcement's effect in boosting national pride.


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Malaysia: Business to Politics · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Peter at Competitive Malaysia looks at the fates of three local businessmen-turned-politicians.  His conclusion: “it is better for businessman to remain focus on it core competencies….business rather than enter into politic.”


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Mexico, Cuba: Mexican Media on the Sheraton Cuban Kickout · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Jefferson Morley takes a survey of of what the Mexican media is saying about the scandal, “el hotelazo” in which the U.S. Treasury Department told the management of the Sheraton hotel in downtown Mexico City to expel 16 Cuban officials who were meeting with U.S. oil executives. A U.S. spokeswoman said the meeting violated the Helms-Burton Act which prohibits American companies from dealing with Cuban individuals or companies.


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Myanmar: Interview with Shan King’s Son · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Burma Digest has an interview with Harn Yawnghwe, the youngest son of the last ruler of the Shan State kingdom of Yawnghwe, who now lives in exile and participates in the democracy movement.


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Nepal: Dissolving the government · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Legal News from Nepal on the government -“Prominent legal experts on Tuesday called on the King to immediately dissolve the government under his chairmanship taking in view the yesterday's landmark Supreme Court verdict that disbanded the Royal Commission for Corruption Control instituted by the king following the royal takeover last year.”


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Pakistan: Clashes in Lahore · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

The controversy over the cartoons refuses to die down. A clash in Lahore reported by Metroblogging Lahore.


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Philippines: Blogmobbed · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Filipino bloggers go after an accused “splogger,” i.e. someone who sets up a network of blogs that contain plagiarized content in order to draw traffic for Adsense dollars.  Apparently, one of his tactics was to critique high-traffic bloggers so that supporters and friends would link to his site while defending those bloggers.  The victims’ response?  Argue back but not link to the splogger.  Read Sassy Lawyer, Manuel Viloria or Yuga if you're interested.


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Racial diversity in London · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Soul on Ice discusses racial diversity in London……….”Pakistanis hate Indians for some obscure reason. Jamaicans dislike Nigerians who have nothing good to say about them. People of Jewish extraction are always looked upon with some senseless suspicion. But still we cross-pollinate and a run to my local market in Deptford sees all sorts buying food from lands as far away as Timbuktu”


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Security a Bit Too Tight in Turin · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

All About Latvia reports how the Latvian Olympic hockey team couldn't leave the arena for 40 minutes this past Saturday – because Laura Bush was somewhere nearby, watching the U.S.-Switzerland women’s hockey game.


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South Africa: floods destroy houses · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

African HouseIT has three stories on housing crisis in South Africa as floods cause extensive damage to mud houses and shacks.


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South Korea Embraces Super-Bowl MVP · Global Voices
Tian Yi

The Lost Nomad highlights a Los Angeles Times article on Hines Ward becoming an instant national hero in South Korea.  Hines, born to a Korean mother and an African American GI father, grew up in the US and suffered discrimination from the Korean community.  He was recently elected the most valuable player of the Super Bowl, America's annual football extravaganza.


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Sri Lanka: Knowing Peace · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Knowing peace in Sri Lanka is unlikely if you were born after 1982 says Curious Yellow. “If you were born in '82, and if you were Tamil and lived in Colombo, or somewhere urbanised, then the chances are your parents had to flee, or take some kind of evasive action in '83.”


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St. Lucia: Tech Institute visit · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Matthew Hunte vists the Vieux Fort Technical Institute in southern St. Lucia, “in an attempt to understand a bit more about that nature of this unique school and to truly find out where their students are coming from”.


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Stealing Candies on Valentine’s · Global Voices
Tian Yi

The blogger at The Asia Pages gets a chuckle out of a report that in the South Korean army, new conscripts have to share chocolates  from their girlfriends with their seniors on Valentine's day.


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Story of a Ukrainian Grandmother: Baba Omaha · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Stefan from Dykun tells a story of his grandmother, who was kidnapped and brought to Nazi Germany – like many other Ukrainians – to work at a munitions factory at the age of 17. When the war ended, she didn't return to the Soviet Union but escaped to the United States, where she has spent most of her life living in Omaha. Hence her name: Baba Omaha. Stefan writes from a unique perspective of someone who has family both in the United States and in Ukraine – Poltava region in the East and Ternopil region in the West.


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The “Official” View on China’s Reform · Global Voices
Tian Yi

ESWN translates  from the quasi-official Caijing magazine an article that is reputed to represent the views of senior Chinese officials.  The article states that many injustices “occurred because the administrative powers intervened in the distribution of production during the marketization“.   The author cites the central government's plan to reform “the government's administrative system” as a top priority to push China's reforms forward, which sounds like a veiled call for political reform.


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Cambodia: The Shadow of the Past · Global Voices
Tharum Bun

In 1970 a boy of ten Nhem En joined Khmer Rouge. He was sent to study photography in China, and six years later became a photographer of death at Tuol-Sleng genocide museum, the site of S-21. He told journalists in 2001 about his past work that “they [the prisoners] always believed that after the Khmer Rouge arrested them they would die or face problems. So when I took photographs, their faces looked scared, eyes full of pity, hands in handcuffs.” Macam-macam believes these photos are among the most famous ones ever taken by a South East Asian in our modern tragedy era.
Photo courtesy of Colin Mutchler
After a heavy rain, it begins to shine
The war is over. After bitter year 1975-1979 Cambodian history had her new chapter, the map of the country has emerged once again in travel guidebook and became one of the top tourist destinations in South-East Asia. For survivors, refugees, and their children, it is hard to be away from the infamous killing field. Individual and collective identity of Cambodian citizens is yet in question. The winds of war has resulted a new generation of Cambodians living outside their home country. And a large percent of immigrants began new lives in the United State, France, Australia, Canada, and in other coutries in many parts of the world. They have to live in new communities and learn to cope with the past psychologically and culturally. A Cambodian-American Puthearorth, who at age 14 left his home country for the United States, has been educated mostly in this new world, exposured to this foreign culture, and has to handle the way of thinking and living not in a single way. He reflects the matter of his identity that
“as a Khmer growing up in the American cultural society, it is almost impossible to maintain the true identity of who I really am; in fact, this is true across the board with many immigrant children in this country. The Identity Conflict is simply a question of giving up the old one and embrace the new one, maintaining the old and not accepting the new, or give up a little bit and take in a little bit.”
Two-way communication tool weblog can be deployed as way for people to comfortably tell their own stories, thoughts, and memory of the past. “Though it is only appropriate to identify myself as a Khmerican, it is almost impossible to understand what that is like,” he added.
Over two decades after the fall of Pol Pol regime, newspaper announcement of missing person is a mean for survivors of war-torn Cambodia. Day after day a Cambodian weblogger Mean Lux reads the paper as he hope to find his uncle's name.
In Phnom Penh, a foreign tourist describes life in this capital city in a way that can lead to an understanding about life in general of Cambodian people. One day he witnessed children who have to work for a living, and wrote that
“As you walk the streets, you are constatly bombarded with requests to buy books or newspapers from locals with baskets of the reading material hanging from around their necks. But these sellers are not adults, or even teenagers. They are almost exclusively young kids, aged anywhere from 5 to 10.”
Julie D highlight situation of the country that “over 40% of Cambodians have never attended school. More than a quarter of the adult population cannot read or write. In this struggling country, thousands of children, both rural and urban, grow up without proper nutrition, without proper education, without any of the basic opportunities that we all take for granted.”
In Siem Reap, through arts, exhibitions at The Land Mine “Museum” offer foreign tourists an understanding of year-long civil war nation. The museum was founded by a former Khmer Rouge soldier. “It is also inhabited by a dozen or more children who are also land mine victims.“
An American citizen who worked in Cambodia before Khmer Rouge came to power, and has currently returned home from a trip to this country has a piece of opinion by comparing bigger Cambodia to tiny island Hong Kong:
“I have traveled in about 60 countries since 1969, and what I saw in Cambodia was rivaled perhaps only by Hong Kong's infamous “walled city,” a 12-acre No Man's Land, which was torn down in 1999.”
News headline in the New York Times “Why Is Everybody Going to Cambodia” makes buzz in blogosphere. Keno, a Cambodian weblogger commented “while surfing the web today, I found a very good article newly published which answer what's special about Cambodia, and why more and more people visiting here.”

author: Tharum Bun


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Trinidad & Tobago: Hip-hop meets Carnival · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Caribbean Free Radio posts a humorous tale about a rap video crew's attempts to shoot a music video during Carnival


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Ukrainian Political TV Ads Roundup · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Scott W. Clark at Foreign Notes does a roundup of the Ukrainian parties’ TV ads: Regions of Ukraine; Our Ukraine; Viche; Pora. Yulia Tymoshenko's Bloc, however, is neglecting the TV campaign, for some reason.

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Uruguay, Argentina, Chile: Environmental Paradox · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Bob Row explains an environmental paradox facing three populist heads of state in Chile, Uruguay, and Argentina with his typically clever caricature and bilingual description.


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Uzbekistan: Valentine Ban · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Registan.net reports on Uzbekistan's ban on press mentions of Valentine's Day.


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Venezuela: Leones de Caracas win the Caribbean Series · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Daniel Duquenal reports that Caracas’ baseball team, the Leones, won the Caribbean baseball series.


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Vietnam: Saigon Architecture · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Our contributor Vietnamese God gives us a sampling of architecture in Ho Chi Minh City, a.k.a. Saigon.


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

Buzkashi in Tajikistan – by Dushanbe Pictures, Erik Petersson, 2006.
Welcome to the latest scan of the Central Asian and Caucasian blogosphere, brought to you bi-weekly by neweurasia. While many parts of the region still suffer from severe winter conditions (as mentioned in the last roundup), the first signs of spring appear as well (see e.g. the Uzbekistan section).
As usual, we'll take you through the countries alphabetically.
Armenia:
The Armenia section of our travels through the regional blogosphere is essentially a roundup of three great roundups: Onnik Krikorian continues to post weekly summaries from the Armenian blogosphere on his Oneworld blog. This week has been heavily dominated by failed peace talks between arch-rivals Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Another roundup is brought to us by Myrthe, a Dutch national with a passion for everything Armenian. She has put up her favourite stories of the week. Who Knew Armenians Could Rap has a, yes, roundup of the Armenian rap scene.
Azerbaijan:
Can the large Azeri minority in Iran persuade the regime to abandon its nuclear ambitions? Nathan over at The Registan is skeptical and suggests that Azerbaijan's safest bet is to keep out of a potential future conflict. In what will probably one of his last posts on/from Azerbaijan, Carpetblogger (now relocated to the Ukraine) provides an excellent summary of a Fashion Show that was staged in the Azeri capital last year. Speaking of beauty and fashion, you can find a picture of Miss Azerbaijan 2006 on the same blog.
Georgia:
Fancy a sightseeing tour of Tbilisi? Ben and Alice have put up a nice commented photo set. Kaukasus has an interesting post about Georgian artist Andro Wekua, whose work can be seen in an exhibition in New York. The post also contains links to showcase blogs of Georgian artists David Arobelidze and Otar Arisheli.
Kazakhstan:
Do you think Almaty has not a single chance to host the 2014 Winter Olympics? Well, you better look at these photos on Pestaola.gr and change your mind. For background information on the candidates’ race check The Registan and neweurasia. Susan in Kazakhstan has an interesting post about Kazakh gestures – she explains it all: handshakes, expressing gratitude, physical contact or staring – this is essential reading for cultural understanding.
Kyrgyzstan:
Betsy writes about everyday deceptions in Kyrgyz life on her blog A Moveable Feast. Whether it's a headmaster arguing about the colour of a pen or a full restaurant without gas to cook, many things in Jalalabad are just not what they seem if you dare to dig a little deeper. Betsy wonders whether she'll take her doublecheck-attitude back home to America. Larry Tweed aka The Kyrgyzstan Kid has a lyrical mouth-watering post on shashlik (the Central Asian kebab). After last year's turmoil in Kyrgyzstan, the country is still struggling to return to normality. The soap opera that has dominated political life ever since the toppling of the former government is beginning to unease observers. What is the outlook for the future? James of neweurasia and Gene of The Registan hold different opinions.  Vyacheslav in Bishkek has set himself the objective of earning $1,400 before April 5th. He is working on commission in a local business and promises to update the readers about his progress on his blog, moneysuck.com.
Tajikistan:
Again, check out Dushanbe Pictures for some breathtaking shots from Tajikistan. Recently, Erik witnessed one of the most excititing sports games – Buzkashi. In Buzkashi, a goat carcass is put in the center of a circle and surrounded by the players of two teams. The object of the game is to get the carcass to the scoring area. A similar game, ulak, is played in Kyrgyzstan, and Buzkashi is one of Afghanistan's national sports. James of neweurasia has some details on micro-finance as a powerful tool to alleviate poverty in Central Asia's poorest country.
Turkmenistan:
Peter of neweurasia reports that the Institute for War and Peace Reporting will launch a Turkmen radio broadcasting service. Will it have an impact on the country's media situation? Also, thanks to Turkmen blogger Karakum, the post carries information on media penetration in the most isolated Central Asian country. Vperyod (Forward), a left-wing youth Russian party, announced on its blog that it planned to picket the Turkmen embassy in Moscow in protest against drastic pension cuts in the country. Paikhas, an opposition Turkmen blog, offers its views on a new Turkmen web magazine Turkmanskaya Iskra..
Uzbekistan:
Bсеузный блог has an “exclusive” on the first flowers of the year in Uzbekistan (complete with photos).  Also of interest, the blog has a post about Uzbekistan's contestants in the winter Olympics, and wishes the athletes luck. Новое Узбекское Слово has an interesting post on why a radio station was shut down in Uzbekistan.  The station, which played music and various other programs, reported on the resignation of the minister of internal affairs without going by the given official word. The ‘Bazaar News Network’ in Uzbekistan spread rumours about an earthquake that never came. The Registan, Seidenstraße and T-Moor have the details. Bozor has an interesting photo shoot of young peoples’ footwear in Samarkand. The author walked around one day snapping photos of peoples’ feet. Afisha has a good post on an upcoming intellectual olympiad in Tashkent (Feb. 20-27) in which students of a variety of ages and backgrounds compete.  It is sponsored by the Forum of Culture and Art of Uzbekistan.  It will include festivals of fencing, chess, and computer games, as well as competitions such as, “Do you know the law?”, or, “do you know the history”?
The wider region:
This week, neweurasia's country blogs will each feature blog posts about HIV/Aids in Central Asia and the Caucasus. The Azeri and Armenian blogs have already done so and portray the two countries’ difficult situation with regards to one of the most imminent regional health threats. Also, press freedom in Central Asia is discussed by Neil on our homebase, as is the eternal question: ‘Where do Central Asians come from?’. Hulegu reports on a Central Asian music event in London, where Azeri, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Uyghur and Turkish artists performed live. Uzgen laments the shortage of Central Asia talent taking part at the Turin Winter Olympics. While Kazakhstan is reasonably well represented, with 57 sportsmen taking part, Uzbekistan trails far behind with four. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have only one apiece, while Turkmenistan has sent nobody.

author: Ben Paarmann


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Zimbabwe: white farmers not wanted · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Eddie Cross writing in Zimbabwean Pundit comments on a recent remark by ZANU-PF that rather that allow white farmers to return under a leasehold agreement,  the state was bent on taking over the white farms.  He concludes that by denying white farmers their rights, the government undermines the rights of all citizens.


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Russian Diplomacy · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Ayuna Nechayeva at Wanabehuman marks the Diplomat's Day in Russia (Feb. 10) with a review of the past and present of the Russian diplomacy.


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Africa: regain indigenous knowledge · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Timbuktu Chronicles points to an article in Science in AFrica for Africans to regain control of their indigenous knowledge and biological resources.


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Another Chechen Perspective on Danish Cartoons · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

As Ilias Musayev, Copenhagen spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Independent Chechen Republic of Ichkeriya, shares his views on the Danish cartoons and other issues, David McDuff of A Step At A Time writes that “the West could certainly afford to take a few lessons from Chechens in political realism.” Andy Young of Taking Aim is not surprised, however, that there're few people left who continue to take Chechnya's government-in-exile seriously.


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Argentina, Brazil: An Argentinean’s Experience in Rio · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Argentine super blogger, Jorge Gobbi, has four posts (1, 2, 3, 4) on his recent trip to Rio de Janeiro. (With videos!)

author: David Sasaki


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Argentina: Valentine’s Day in Buenos Aires · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Dan Perlman, Robert Wright, and Jeff Barry all recount their Valentine's Day in Buenos Aires.


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Armenia: Destroying Old Yerevan · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Oneworld Multimedia reports on the tearing down of old Yerevan.

author: Nathan Hamm


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Armenia: SOS Kinderdorf · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Onnik Krikorian has two pages of photos and reporting on SOS Kinderdorf's village near Abovian, Armenia. The organization, which works in 132 countries, gives children without parental care the opportunity to grow up in a family-type environment.


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Bangladesh: Muslim Aid · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

imperfect world 2006 on “Muslim Aid Bangladesh (a component of Muslim Aid, a charity based here in the UK) has come under the spotlight from a ultra-right wing online publication called Frontpage magazine.”


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Barbados: Leptospirosis · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

“How will the current garbage crisis on Barbados impact the spread of deadly Leptospirosis during the coming rainy season?” asks Barbados Free Press in a post detailing the problem and its background.


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Belize: Local elections · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Melody reports that candidates have been nominated for the Belize local elections, which local observers see as “a litmus test that could well set the stage for the outcome of the General Elections.”


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Bird Flu in Slovenia · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Michael of The Glory of Carniola reports that bird flu has landed really close to where he lives and describes what's being done about it.


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Brazil: Getting Rolling Stoned in Rio · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Cuaderno Latinoamericano, a group blog maintained by students at Tulane University, says that the Rolling Stones will be playing a free concert this weekend in Rio de Janeiro. Free, that is, unless you take into account the $750,000 that the city is paying to make it happen.


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Burkina Faso: Missionary Aid in Djibo · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Missionary aid worker, Under the Acacais outlines his schedule over the next few weeks and describes the town of Djibo where he will be living in Burkina Faso.


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Cuba: Mission Miracle · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Cuban blog Proposiciones reproduces an article (ES) on the Cuba-Venezuela medical cooperation program, Misión Milagro.


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DRC: UN may withdraw support · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Congo Watch reports that The UN has told the Congolese forces that they will not longer provide support unless human rights violations stop.


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Ethiopia: drought · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Meskel Square reports on the drought in  Ethiopia.   “Moyale is at the heart of a devastating drought that has left an estimated 737,000 Ethiopians struggling to survive without access to clean water. Beyond Ethiopia, the drought has spread out to affect more than 8.3 million people, including 1.2 million children aged under five, across the Horn of Africa”.


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Ethiopia: Meeting between Meles and Blair · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Weichegud!ET politics comments on the  difference in the reports on the meeting between Britain's PM, Tony Blair and Meles Zenawi by British news media.


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Ganji, Revolution & Cartoons · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

Nima Milanian in Iranian Truth, a group blog, writes about Akbar Ganji, jailed journalist, Blogger  reminds us Ganji's solitary confinement and says:
“Five months in solitary confinement. There is a greater threat to the world then Iran's nuclear technology. Its treatment of political prisoners. Call on foreign governments to create policies that are contingent on respect for human rights .”
Abtahi, former Vice President and blogger, writes about Islamic Revolution's anniversary. Blogger tries to define real meaning of independence beyond slogans and criticize current government indirectly.
“ What the present generation who are mostly born after revolution need is to understand the present condition and to program as per their wish and need. This need will not be answered by slogans. In this highly connected world, Iran’s society more than ever needs a rational management which should avoid tiring confrontations and should define the real share of Iran’s power from the world power and to get its right. The real meaning of independence in today’s world is the high power of give and take. Those who define independence as isolation and conflict with the world are endangering the principle of the independence of the country more than others and therefore they are making the nation dependent to foreign powers.”
View from Iran, an Iran based blogger,  shares with us a fresh view about cartoons and Iranian people's reaction:
“We were talking about the cartoon furor which, despite what you might think, is not such a furor in Iran. Not that Iranians are not observant Muslims, just that they are sick to death of the manipulation of Islam for political ends.”

author: Fred Petrossian


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Guyana: Truth in journalism · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

MediaCritic publishes a letter sent to him by a journalist disputing MediaCritic's claim that the Stabroek News was the only Guyanese media outlet to carry the “complete” story of what happened at the funeral of slain journalist Ronald Waddell. MediaCritic wonders whether the Stabroek News “has pulled a James Frey on us.”

author: Georgia Popplewell


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Haiti: Spin Doctors, and the occupation of the Hotel Montana · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Free Haiti fingers three US reporters — Carol J. Williams, Edward M. Gomez and Kathie Klarreich — who appear to be “spinning the facts” on the current situation in Haiti, and posts some dramatic photos of protesters swarming the pool at the Hotel Montana, where the members of the CEP (Provisional Electoral Council), the media and others have been headquartered during the election period. According to Baturrico (ES), South African Bishop Desmond Tutu, who is also lodged at the Montana, addressed the protesters from the balcony of his hotel room, calling for calm.


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India: Students abroad · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Education is big bucks in India. Foreign universities are busy attracting the attention of the Indian Student says The Daily Rhino.


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Iran: Word “Lovers “Filtered! · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

According to Gladiator, an Iran based blogger, in most ISPs word lover(s) (Ashegh or Asheghan in Persian) has been filtered!


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Joint-Declaration Advocating Press Freedom in China · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Richard points out on Peking Duck that contrary to popular belief, some Chinese do care about freedom of speech.  Foreign media are prominently reporting the joint declaration signed by 13 senior intellectuals and retired officials protesting press censorship in China.


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Kenya: Love Chronicles – the end · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Gukira finally and sadly ends his Love Chronicles with number XIV……..of the many comments “I read the chronicles from end to beginning, wondering where I've been all this time. I'm gripped by your words each time…and moved. what talents you have.”


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Kenya: Questions of  “M” (Marc) · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

ThinkersRoom posts a series of questions put to him by other Kenyan bloggers (I think!) and comes up with some interesting answers -   Q”Do you have a curly kit”? A “certainly not”.


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Korean Husbsters · Global Voices
Tian Yi

The Lost Nomad and his readers discuss Korea's fascination with “hubs”.  One reader comments that “a nation claiming to want to become the hub of this and the hub of that constantly acts in such a way to make itself merely the ‘hub cap’ of this and that”.


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Kurdistance: · Global Voices
Deborah Ann Dilley

Hello everyone! I'm finally back -and married. The winner of the “GV Kurdish Post Title” contest was Metin from Talk Turkey, and I particularily enjoy the irony that it was a Turkish gentleman that came up with the neatest name for a Kurdish weekly, it just goes to show the great sense of harmony and openness that I believe Global Voices fosters. Anyway, on to the update of the Kurdish blogosphere for the last two weeks:
Talk about the Passion continues to chronicle his adventures in teaching in Northern Iraq/Southern Kurdistan. Thunder is particularly loud where he is living now and he has rats but he seems to be enjoying his stay and will be celebrating his one year anniversary of teaching in Kurdistan.
Save RojTV continues in their effort to stay operating and have been collecting letters and articles of support from the Kurdish and European communities, one of the article postings this week is from none other than Vladimir who writes From Holland to Kurdistan (featured weekly here).
East of Kurdistan continues to offer itself as a one stop shop for all of your Eastern Kurdistan news needs.
The Is-Ought Problem is back on-line with support for the Danes.
Updates on the bird flu in Kurdistan is provided by Pearls of Iraq this week. Also there is a posting of a great article about the cartoon controversy.
Along the same vein Roj Bash! has an excellent posting about Islam, Mohammad and his Critics that looks at the historical implications. Plus there is a wonderful posting of a translation of another Kurdish blogger who writes primarily in Kurdish on the same subject.
Rasti writes about the absurdity of a recent Turkish newspaper editorial calling for a re-evaluation of the Kurdish Question in Turkey. Other items written about include a piece about Kurdish activists such as Kani Xulam from the American Kurdish Information Network. The murder of a different Kani, Kani Yilmaz, is discussed as the event has been a shock to the Kurdish communty.
Hiwa Hopes posted an obituary for Kani Yilmaz as well. He responds to critism that he has received over voting in the Iraqi election. He also posts about the recent success of Darin a Kurdish pop singer in Sweden.
We will wrap up with info on From Holland to Kurdistan who has written on a bunch of different subjects including the new anti-American war movie Valley of the Wolves-Iraq. He also writes of Kurdish protests of the Turks and Kurdish protests of the Mohammad cartoons. And in the extremes of happy and sad news, Vladimir has a wonderful article on a topic neglected in Kurdish politics, that of the state of the Kurds in Western Kurdistan, Syria and allegations of the government burying Kurds alive and then on the opposite side of the spectrum a posting about American soldiers befriending the Kurds of Northern Iraq/Southern Kurdistan.

author: Deborah Ann Dilley


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Kyrgyzstan: Wolves · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

James at neweurasia discusses Kyrgyzstan's exploding wolf population.


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Law-ful in China · Global Voices
Tian Yi

Two laws are going into effect on March 1st in China.  One, as reported by HK Dave on Simon World, requires all discos and karaoke lounges to install surveillance cameras.  Another will limit admittance to karaoke clubs and internet cafes in China  to those ages 18 and up, as noted by Hunter on East Asia Watch.  However, both bloggers doubt the laws will be enforced reliably.


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Malaysia: High-rise from Hell · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

MaRvELgAL reminisces about living in a Kuala Lumpur high-rise infested by drug addicts and suspicious “suicides” — “When it gets really quiet, you can hear the thud when the body hits the ground, usually followed by a cry or scream. This, I got used to it. The next day, you can always see a stain of blood on the ground floor.”

author: Jose Manuel Tesoro


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Malaysia, Japan: This Love Thing · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Kenny Sia points out that in Japan, girls buy boys chocolates for Valentine's Day. He complains that in Malaysia it's the opposite. “Man, this love thing is evil.”


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Malaysia: Valentine’s Day Reshuffle · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Jeff Ooi, Mack Zulkifli and Cik Amoi talk about the Feb. 14 cabinet reshuffle in Malaysia. Writes Mack: “There are two types of response, generally. One was ‘what's new?’ and the other was ‘why fix what's not broken’. “


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Mexico: Creative Commons and iLaw · Global Voices
David Sasaki

Eduardo Arcos recently released a podcast (ES) explaining the upcoming workshop, iLaw, which will take place in Mexico City on March 16th and 17th. Arcos and friends also discuss the importance of Creative Commons licenses for online content creators.


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Mongolia: Chingis Statue · Global Voices
Nathan Hamm

Mongolia Matters has the details on a planned 40 meter tall steel statue of Chingis Khan holding a gold whip to be built about 50 km outside of the capital.


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Myanmar, Thailand: Bangkok Falls · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

At Burma Digest, a poster hopes that the protests against Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra will send a message to his allies in the Yangon government. He calls on other Burmese to join and protest at Thai embassies. “Today, the Road to Burma Liberation can also be through Bangkok.”


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Nepal: The US Ambassador · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Blogdai on the US Ambassador in Nepal – “No one on the international scene goes more out of their way to acknowledge, magnify and give a blundering, tacit approval to Nepal's Maoists more than U.S. Ambassador to Nepal, James F. Moriarty. “

author: Neha Viswanathan


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Nigeria: Muslim cartoons · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Nigerian Times posts a scathing comment  on the Muslim cartoon protests in Africa………..”Most Africans always like to ape others. And they are the worst hypocrites in the world”


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Nigeria: Postives · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Jeremy of Naijablog rooting for Nigeria as usual provides the reaons why he is staying in Nigeria and why maybe some of us should be heading back sometime soon.


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Pakistan: Real Islam · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Raheel reproduces a letter exploring the real Islam – “Let me close by reiterating that Islam and the West have a common enemy in terrorism. We must be allies in eradicating terrorism, and we must be not only rational in this, but I hope that we will also rise above this to be spiritual.”


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Pakistan: Students detained after demonstration · Global Voices
Neha Viswanathan

Metroblogging Islamabad on 150 students being detained after a “demonstration by thousands of students who broke into the highly protected diplomatic enclave during a protest here on Tuesday against the publication of blasphemous cartoons.”


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Panda Remorse · Global Voices
Tian Yi

In the midst of the debate in Taiwan over whether to accept China's “generous” offer of pandas,  The Foreigner in Formosa points out that “American zoos are having a bit of buyer's remorse when it comes to theirs“.


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Philippines: Remembering Revolt · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

As the 20th anniversary of the Philippines “people power revolution” that ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos nears, a law professor and blogger remembers where he was during those historic days. “20 years ago, I was willing to die for my country. I have no reason to depart from that belief 20 years hence, present leadership notwithstanding and apathy being the new social cancer.”


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Puerto Rico: Education ills · Global Voices
Georgia Popplewell

Gil the Jenius compares the Puerto Rican Department of Education's announcement that they're laying off of 5,000 personnel to “a patient with cancer-riddled internal organs being told he's about to have his appendix removed,” and offers his own diagnosis of the problems plaguing the Department.


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Roundup of Hungary’s Pre-election “Retardo Politics” · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Folks at Pestside.hu do a roundup of Hungary's pre-election “retardo politics”: a “miner problem” for one party and a “minor problem” for another, Socialist “red spots” and free Internet, a former cosmonaut as one of the candidates. They also write about the outing of a Catholic cardinal who used to be an informer for the Communists and the church's unlikely reaction to it.


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Serbian Veggies · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Desperate Serbwife writes about Serbia's “overlooked gem”: vegetables that are full of taste.


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Singapore: Funny Valentine · Global Voices
Jose Manuel Tesoro

Doubleyellow suggests that Singapore should have its local version of Valentine's Day: a day to profess love for the government. “On this day, all bus and cab prices will be marked up 10% and GST will be increased to 50%.”


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‘Singing Revolution’ in Estonia · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Bonjour l'Estonie points to a documentary about a predecessor of the recent bloodless revolutions in the former Soviet Union – Estonia's Singing Revolution. The documentary's website is here.


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Sudan: glimmer of democracy? · Global Voices
Sokari Ekine

Sudan Watch points to a reuters report that might mean  “Glimmers of democracy breaking out in Sudan.


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Supermale on Moslem World Boycott of Danish Goods · Global Voices
Alice Backer

Morad Ouasti reports (FR) at Supermale on the mechanisms behind the moslem world’ s boycott of Danish goods: “Denmark is already suffering early consequences while the boycott is being organized via Internet and text messaging … Meanwhile, European companies  [such as Danon and Nestle] adopt an ad hoc strategy of distancing themselves from Denmark so as to not ruin their image.”

author: Alice Backer