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South Asia: Looking Back At 2009 · Global Voices
Rezwan

The year 2009 is ending and its time to retrospect how the year has been for the South Asian region. In a two-part review we will look back at some of the major events which took place this year in the South Asian countries seen through the eyes of the citizen journalists. Special thanks to the South Asia authors of Global Voices for their insight and hard work all around the year.
The year was tough for South Asia as the global recession affected people of this region too. The populous region is a source of many migrant workers in the middle east and other places in the world. We saw many migrant workers returning to their homeland as they lost their jobs and saw opportunities diminishing. Energy was a major concern as some countries had to cope with power shortage and rolling blackouts.
Although the history of Bangla blogging is relatively short, the bloggers could achieve a milestone. This year about 50 books had been published by bloggers targeting the Ekushey Book Fair in February. We also had an interesting post where we looked at Bangladesh through the eyes of the expatriate bloggers.
On February 25th morning the news broke that a mutiny was in progress inside  Bangladesh Rifles (BDR – paramilitary border security force) head office. Amidst rumors and media attentions citizen journalists jumped in to cover the developments and provided important perspectives.
Ack Ack Gun on Satmasjid, Road 7A. Copyright Drishtipat and used with permission
The mutiny ended tragically as it left as many as 148 people dead or missing including many army officers, which left many questions unanswered. In March YouTube and File Sharing Sites were briefly Blocked in Bangladesh in an attempt to block a leaked tape containing the audio clip of the meeting of the Prime minister and the aggrieved army officers who were protesting the massacre of army officers during the BDR mutiny.
Bangladeshi and Indian Netizens took to the task of analyzing the adverse impact on the nature by the proposed Tipaimukh Hydroelectric Project in India (near Bangladesh border) and the miseries it will bring to the local people. Online campaigns were launched to protest the construction of the dam. Bloggers questioned the transparency of the process of negotiation between the two governments regarding Tipaimukh and discussed about hidden agendas.
In November pressure from Chinese embassy prompted the local authorities to close down a photo exhibition on Tibet in Dhaka.
What is Bhutan? One camp glorifies Bhutan as something close to heaven and the other claims that it is practicing ethnic cleansing by driving out Nepali Lhotsampa minorities. Our new Bhutanese author Sonam Ongmo highlights Bhutanese citizen media to find out the truth.
Landscape of Bhutan. Image by Flickr user Jmhullot, used under a creative commons license
The Gross National Happiness (GNH) concept was originally coined in Bhutan in 1972. However, Bhutanese bloggers share their views on how the concept seems to be taken more seriously in places other than Bhutan.
Election:
This year marked the 15th Lok Sabha (parliament) Elections in India and citizen journalists were up to the task since the start of the political campaign. More interestingly major political parties used different online campaigns for the first time and bloggers reacted to these campaigns (BJP, INC).
screenshot of a Congress ad showing on Bollywood Frames, an entertainment blog.
It was indeed India's first digital election. Global Voices special coverage on India's elections dissected the campaigns in multiple angles, like the analysis of  the impact of socially conscious corporate campaigns and how civil society groups in India used digital tools to run voter registration and transparency campaigns in the run up to the elections.
Bloggers weighed in with their predictions and analysis of opinion polls and how celebrity power impacted the elections. They have also investigated the black money trails of the politicians.
This time around we saw the the advent of citizen-driven election monitoring – Vote report based on Ushahidi engine and a plethora of online election resources.
Equipped with all these the month long election was closely watched by the citizen journalists and after the polls they questioned lower voter turnouts and efficacy of campaigns.
When the results were declared it emerged that the voters voted for no change.  Indian Twittersphere was quite aloud in reacting to the developments as the results surfaced.
Online Campaigns:
This year we also saw some successful online campaigns on various social issues being launched in India. At the beginning of the year many Indians were irked by the news that a group of young women in Mangalore in the southern state of Karnataka were attacked by Hindu vigilantes in a pub (bar). Soon an online campaign emerged by a Facebook group that planned a sassy, bold move to send pink colored women’s panties to the Ram Sena party as a ‘Valentine's gift’. This non violent protest was called the Pink Chaddi (underwear) campaign.
The above video shows a pile of underwear and the love letters to the Hindu vigilantes.
This year the first TEDIndia event took place and the bloggers were excited about it. Read their take on the event.
Other notable online campaigns included the greatest driving challenge and the sapling project.
Human Rights and Freedom Of Speech:
Chyetanya Kunte, an Indian blogger based in the Netherlands, was silenced by legal threats for criticizing a TV reporter for using sensationalism in her report during the Mumbai terrorist attacks.
Shiv Shena, a far right political party had sued a 19 year old Indian netizen who criticized Shiv Sena in a social networking site.
The Indian state of Manipur was in chaos after pictures of an unarmed 27-year old, being shot and killed by the police surfaced. Citizen journalists criticized the state and the media for ignoring this issue.
On the other hand there was a triumph of human rights as an Indian court ruling decriminalized gay sex and a blogger termed the day of the ruling as a big day in the history of independent India.
Culture & Religion:
Slumdog Millionaire, a British film based on India become the buzz of Indian bloggers as it had won four Golden Globe awards and was nominated for ten categories at the Oscars. This film sparked debates about how it shows life in India's slums, and the attraction it holds for foreigners. But that did not stop the movie to sweep the Oscars with win in 8 categories.
There was an informative post explaining Durga Puja and its rituals.
Bidding Goddess Durga farewell until next year. Photo by Aparna Ray
In the next part of this series we will look at Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Please stay tuned.

author: Rezwan


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The Balkans: Sarajevo-Belgrade Train · Global Voices
Veronica Khokhlova

Balkanology Blog reports on the recent launch of a direct Sarajevo-Belgrade train, the first one “in almost two decades.” CAFÉ TURCO recalls Serbia's recent history in a post titled “Serbia through the eyes of a train traveller (me).”

source: news-globalvoices

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

author: Veronica Khokhlova


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Trinidad & Tobago: Do the Math  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Jumbie's Watch does the math on Trinidad and Tobago's murder rate: “While the CoP was bleating in public about the 3.65% murder solve rate (for last year), he neglected to mention that for the ‘known’ 508 victims of this year, there is a further 904 still missing!!!”

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Zimbabwe: Politics of condemnation · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

Amanda blogs about the “politics of condemnation” in Zimbabwe: The Congress [Zanu PF] resolved that “the Party’s national strategic objective for the next five years shall be the checking, containment and ultimate defeat of the West’s neo-colonial regime change agenda.”

author: Ndesanjo Macha


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Azerbaijan: Justice for Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

As its first post for 2010, Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines remembers the two blogging youth activists sentenced last year to 2 and 2.5 years in prison. Commenting on a new video in support of Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli, the blog hopes that there will soon be justice.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Bangladesh: Blogger Exposes Yellow Journalism · Global Voices
Rezwan

Bangladeshi blogger Akashlal Roy exposes yellow journalism of the Daily Jugantor, a Bangla daily which lifted a Facebook photo (added about a month ago) to depict an young girl drinking alcohol to celebrate the new year on the 31st night.


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Hong Kong: #0101hk – New Year March for Democracy  · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Around 30-thousand Hong Kong residents spent the first day of the 2010 new year by marching in the street, demanding democracy and the release of Liu Xiaobo. To show their support for this rally, twitterers from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China together pushed the hashtag #0101hk to the top ten trendy topics in Twitter.
The new year rally was organized by the pan-democratic alliance to call for universal suffrage in Hong Kong. There are other demands, such as the release of mainland activist Liu Xiaobo, who advocated constitutional reform in China with the 08 Charter signature campaign and was sentenced to 11 years imprisonment on a subversion charge in Christmas day 2009.
The Hong Kong government released its electoral reform consultation in November 2009. The document does not set a path and concrete time table for the universal suffrage of Legislative Council and Chief Executive in Hong Kong. Instead, it proposes the expansion of functional constituencies from 30 to 40 seats. The so-called functional constituencies are arbitrary professional and business sectors, which are composed of either individual or corporate / organization vote. The pan-democratic alliance believes that its expansion is a setback in democracy development. Two major political parties, the Civic Party (CP) and League of Social Democrats (LSD) decided to launch a symbolic referendum on universal suffrage by en masse resignation in five major districts from the legislation council. Although the Democratic Party refused to participate in the resignation campaign, they joined the rally to show their solidarity.
#0101hk
Netizens also help mobilize the rally. Before the demonstration, twitterers had agreed on the hashtag of #0101hk for reporting on the event and set up a tweet-wall for instant mobile report. Twitterers participated in the live report included @bachlau, @pingyanw, @tsuishui, @edwincheese, @sidekickick, @martinoei, @kursk, @stellakwok, @chonghead, @bencrox, @CHANVINCI, @kandhercat and many others. Their tweets were retweeted by mainland counterparts and the hashtag #0101hk entered top 10 of the twitter trending topic. Below is a selection of the micro reports according to the timeline:
14:00 pingyanw: 大遊行將於下午三時開始，現在已經有上千人到場。還我真普選，釋放劉曉波
15:00 BachLau 現場口號：二零一二雙普選！廢除功能組別！不要假民主！釋放劉曉波！港人一條心！
16:00 sidekick 一路上，我們都常在路口停下。大路上車根本不多，所以我們在喊：警察放行。
16:00 sidekick民間電台的貼紙。不要當奴 #0101hk http://moby.to/tgljmt
17:00 sidekick: 大會說，遊行的隊尾仍在中環。(即是出發的地方)
17:30 edwincheese 皇后大道西有大批警察築起人牆 http://yfrog.com/4aeq2pj
18:00 edwincheese 遊行隊伍被警察隔至中聯辦一條大馬路的對面 http://yfrog.com/3lr5gkj
18:00 chonghead 警察挡住一支法西斯旗，在中联办不远处。 – http://moby.to/kb8jzc
18:30 martinoei 警方阻止社民連手持棺材前進 #0101hk http://twitpic.com/w74qg
1８:３0 BachLau : 緊急！示威者衝破干諾道西鐵馬防線，非常混亂，各位注意安全 http://twitpic.com/w772c http://twitpic.com/w772e http://twitpic.com/w772b
1８:30 martinoei: 社民連示威者佔據德輔道西，德輔道西東西行交通中斷 #0101hk http://twitpic.com/w793i
18:45 chonghead 所有人在大喊：释放刘晓波！
19:00 chonghead 黄毓民要求，把一台棺材送到中联办门口，然后和平散去。警察未有回复。
20:00 CHANVINCI 棺材已達中聯辦，人民和平散去 #0101hk http://twitpic.com/w7atn
Hong Kong police as political tool
Many bloggers complained about the barricades that block the protesters from approaching the Central government liaison office. Fongyun in his blogpost, Journey to west, asked:
我不明白為何我們堂堂正正去示威，不去正門叫口號。
竟然要「走後門」，而且還是後門的「對面街」。真夠寒酸的。
Jeff Au Yeung spent his birthday with this rally and he is also very angry about the police arrangement:
警察成了政治工具，我眼見很多可疑的事正在不住發生：尖沙嘴為了讓人看倒數，就慷慨地封了尖沙嘴的所有街道…。現在上萬人遊行，卻只封一條半條行車線，由得卡死的司機乘客指著遊行人士來罵。明知中聯辦是遊行隊伍目的地，那條德輔道西，竟仍然讓大車駛過，明顯就是利用交通作屏障，然後製造道路使用者與遊行人士的直接衝突。
Ip Iam Chong, a contributing reporter from inmediahk.net, had a more detailed description of the scene outside the Liaison office:
人群在中聯辦對面（即西區警署）的行人道上，稍為佔用了一點路面，便被警察用雙重鐵馬封閉起來。因此，人群根本無法集會，只有泛民議員搭了一個小得可憐的台，讓他們與路過的人揮手，大部份人只能往上環方向離去，而且，還要一直走到正街（即兩個街口之外）才能過馬路。
我帶著點好奇心，走到中聯辦的正門，即干諾道那面的入口。未看到正門，便已是鐵馬重重，警察重兵駐守，一般行人距離大門二十米處已無法前進。難為雷玉蓮昨日傍晚已守候在門外，孤軍作戰。
我再走回德輔道西，這次沿著中聯辦這邊的行人路走，距離中聯辦後門方向四十米左右，看到幾個市民舉著一面打了叉的法西斯旗幟，被警察擋住。不遠處，又看到人群與警察混在中聯辦門外（後門），原來是曾健成等人，似乎主要是社民連的人。
With some curiosity, I went to the front door of the Central Government Liaison Office, which was located at the Connaught Road. The whole area was protected by layers of barricades and a large number of police were standing by and waiting for order. Pedestrians were stopped by police when they were about 20 meters from the building. There I found out that a woman protester Lui Yuk-ling had been staying outside the Liaison office alone since late evening last night.
I walked back to Des Voeux Road West along the pedestrian on the side of the back door of the Liaison office and then I saw a number of protesters holding a fascist banner stopped by the police at about 40 meters from the Liaison Office. Some protesters have successfully reached the back door of the Liaison office. Most of them were members of LSD, such as Tsang Kin-sheng.
我在離去途中，從手機上不斷看到越來越多大陸網民在twitter上「推」有關報導，許多人也把這次遊行視作中國民主運動的一部份，當中更有不少有關香港 作為自由之都的美言。在政治高壓下的大陸，香港這次街頭行動成為一個民主想像的缺口。不知這個「缺口」會否成為中國民主運動的推動力呢？

author: Oiwan Lam


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India, Pakistan: Media Cooperation For Peace · Global Voices
Rezwan

Sans Serif reports that two media giants – Jang from Pakistan and The Times of India from India – have joined hands in a peace initiative called ‘Aman ki Asha’ on the first day of the new year. The aim is to foster greater understanding between people of the two countries and to give peace a chance.


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Measuring “China” · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Eln shows the trend of the media appearance of “China” in the past few years.


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Nepal: Way To Start A New Year · Global Voices
Rezwan

Nepali reports that the first day of the new year in Nepal was marked by a nationwide strike by the Indigenous Nationalities Broad Front (INBF). The blogger questions the necessity of such protest.


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Pakistan: Suicide Bomber Targets Playground · Global Voices
Rezwan

Alertpak informs that on the first day of new year a suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden vehicle into the wall of a volleyball playground in Lakki Marwat (NWFP) in Pakistan. The death toll reported was 47 (including 10 minors) and the number is rising fast.


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Russia: Bloggers Cover Opposition Rally · Global Voices
Vadim Isakov

First photographs from a Russian opposition rally in Moscow emerged on the Internet just hours after the event. The pictures are available on the blogs of LJ users  drugoj and zyalt.

author: Vadim Isakov


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Sri Lanka: Unsolicited SMS Message Of The President · Global Voices
Rezwan

All mobile phone subscribers across all networks in Sri Lanka received an SMS from the President in the morning of the first day of the new year containing a propaganda message and new year greeting.  Groundviews criticized the unsolicited message and questioned the source of the expense.


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Top 10 Internet phrases in China In 2009 · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

ESWN translated a local forum CNNB's review of the top 10 Internet phrases in China in 2009.


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Video: Year End Traditions and Rituals · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

In Mexico, some people light candles, incense and take herbal “baths” to bring good luck and good fortune for the coming year.In the following video, merchants tell about the best selling New Year's items such as the 7 herb mix, the New Year Good Luck pack with candle, incense, prayer and holy water and then mention how sales have been slow this year. Maybe they'll be lighting some candles for good luck tonight.
Special meals are often traditional: originating in Sandusky Ohio, some people will be partaking in the  German New Year's Eve pretzel tradition. Following, the video recipe:
In Spain, there is the tradition of eating 12 grapes, one for each stroke of midnight. In this video you'll be able to see a family gathered around the table, with the 12 grapes set on skewers as they try to discover the best technique for accomplishing the task of eating one grape per second:
This next family has a slightly different technique, setting them out in front of them as they tune in to the 12 strokes of midnight radio broadcast:
This video from Peru shows the Latin American tradition of running around the block with suitcases to guarantee a new year with lots of travel:
In Moldova, Romania they have the tradition of the straw bear, a dance showing the birth and resurrection of the seasons:
Joy of Ritual has posted on her vlog some of her favorite New Years traditions from all around the world:
For those who observed the New Year tonight, Happy New Year! What are the traditions in your part of the world? Did you celebrate the New Year in a special way? If yours wasn't tonight, when is it? Please feel free to share this information throught the comments!

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Bolivia: Coca Colla Energy Drink Made from Coca Leaves · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Renzo Colanzi of Mientras Estás Aquí [es] finds it humorous that the Bolivian government plans to manufacture the drink Coca Colla Energy made from the coca leaf.

author: Eduardo Avila


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Guatemala: Best Athlete for 2009 · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Guatezona [es] runs down the nominations for the Best Guatemalan Athlete for 2009, and which includes competitors from sports such as cycling, taekwondo, as well as the popular sport of football.


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Honduras: The Year 2009 in Review · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

The year 2009 was eventful for Honduras, and Aaron Ortiz of Pensieve looks back at the topics written on his blog over the past year including the political crisis, elections, and the country's qualification for the 2010 World Cup.


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Russia: Blogger Arrested for Weapon Possession · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

Russian police found illegal weapons at an apartment of a famous blogger Timofey Shevyakov ( LJ user tarlith-history),  information agency Rosbalt reports [RUS]. Shevyakov is allegedly connected to various propagandist, trolling and hacker groups in Russia.

author: Alexey Sidorenko


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Russian Parliament Start Broadcasting Online · Global Voices
Alexey Sidorenko

The Russian parliament starts broadcasting its sessions online from January 1, 2010, Gzt.ru reports [RUS]. It's believed that these initiatives would increase transparency of political processes in Russia.


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Argentina: Canciones Pegajosas Volume 2 Now Available · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Volume 2 of the Creative-Commons licensed album called Canciones Pegajosas (Sticky Songs) is now available thanks in large part to the efforts Fernando Casale of the Argentine indie-music blog Zona Indie [es] .


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Colombia: Galeras Volcano Eruption Video · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

Twitter user @mrmuller linked to the video of the Galeras Volcano Eruption in Colombia and also posted a picture of the aftermath. It seems the areas in the immediate vicinity of the volcano are being evacuated, but the Black and White Carnival in the city of Pasto will continue as planned.


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Costa Rica: Santa Lucía Wildflowers for Good Luck · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

In January, there is a tradition in Costa Rica where one gives wildflowers called Santa Lucía [es] to one another, which according to blogger Julia Ardón the flowers “will be the talisman that allows one to have good luck and prosperity throughout the year.”


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Cow Urine For Power · Global Voices
Rezwan

Bombaylives!! posts a picture showing an old man buying cow urine (GoMutra) drink from a street vendor in Mumbai.  “GoMutra is said to have some medicinal benefits as said in Ayurveda”, informs the blogger.


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Dominican Republic: Along the President’s Caravan Route · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Orlando Jorge Mera profiles the military assistants who provide security for the President of the Dominican Republic. One of the duties of these assistants is to remain along the route before, during, and after the presidential caravan passes by [es], which may take between 2-5 hours.


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Live Temperature Update Via Twitter · Global Voices
Rezwan

Binaryzero at Lahore Metblogs has launched an useful service via Twitter: “I managed to build this thing out today and we have live temperature updates going out to Twitter after every 30 minutes”. Check it out http://twitter.com/LahoreTemp


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Malawi: Bloggers to watch in the arts in 2010 · Global Voices
Steve Sharra

Of the many Malawian bloggers who have been active throughout 2009, a remarkable number of them have been posting works of art, especially poetry, short fiction, literary analysis, and pictures of paintings. Others have been focusing on the arts and entertainment in Malawi, more broadly.
In this roundup we are looking at five blogs authored by individual Malawians as well as groups of Malawian bloggers, mostly concentrating on creative writing and other forms of art and entertainment. This is the first time we are featuring most of these bloggers on Global Voices.
Blogger Patrick Achitabwino writes about many aspects of Malawian life, but three of his most recent posts discuss developments in Malawian writing. Through his recent posts, we learn that Mike Sambalikagwa Mvona, current president of the Malawi Writers Union, and a prolific writer in his own right, has published an 80-page document, “A Guide to Writers’ and Artists’ Contracts.” Mvona's guide is aimed at helping Malawian writers familiarize themselves with the book publishing process, especially on signing contracts. Achitabwino writes:
By the time you will have finished reading this guide you will have been conversant with general publishing contract guidelines on illustrations and quotations; infringement of existing copyright, libel, and censorship laws; obligation to publish, advance payment and royalties; choice of law among many others.
In another post, Achitabwino analyzes a short story that won first prize in the 2008 First Merchant Bank/Malawi Writers Union Literary Awards. The story is titled “Sins of Our Fathers,” by  Chikumbutso Ndaferankhande, and has been included in a new anthology of Malawian short stories, titled The Bachelor of Chikanda, featuring young Malawian writers previously unpublished, as well as seasoned, published old hands. The new anthology is the subject of another of Achitabwino's posts.
More literary news comes from a blog that was set up in June 2009, by a group of students at the University of Malawi's Chancellor College. Known as The Writers’ Workshop, the blog carries poems, short stories, and news about literary events at Chancellor College and across the country. The Chancellor College Writers’ Workshop dates back to the early days of the establishment of the University of Malawi in the mid-1960s. It has played a pioneering role in the literary history of Malawi, having been associated with Malawi's most important poets, novelists, playwrights and literary scholars.
Through the blog we learn of the group's activities that involve lots of travel and outreach with other universities, secondary schools, groups and associations across the country. The group has links with the recently established Catholic University of Malawi, the 12 year-old Mzuzu University, the Malawi Writers Union, the Book Publishers Association of Malawi, and various associations and secondary schools. They travel to other university campuses and secondary schools, as well as to publishing houses. They also host other writers’ groups at the Chancellor College campus.
The most recent entry on the blog is a short profile of the group's member, Hardson Chamasowa Davie, a poet who writes in the local language Chichewa, and has been enjoying airtime on national radio stations where his new poetry album, titled “Ku Smongolia”, is being played.
Also utilizing blogs to publish literary works is the Lilongwe Writers Circle, a group of Malawian writers residing in the city of Lilongwe. The groups meets once a month, and discusses the works of members. Their blog carries short fiction, poetry, literary commentary, short essays, and announcements. A poem titled “Space on Trip“, by Tendy Kay, posted in November, starts:
The room spinning
My temperature constricted in one valve about to POP!
Eyes doubled in size
Am sure I hit the light switch
Was it off or on?
. . .
The most recent entry on the blog is an announcement by one of the members of a new online magazine called “Afrocentric,” to which we turn next.
Afrocentric Magazine started out as a blog, with first entries appearing in August 2009. The initial entries sought to define and explain the term “Afrocentric,” depending on how each of the magazine's editorial team saw it. Nimbi Chiko wrote:
The afrocentric discourse attempts to shift, construct, critique and challenge the way of knowing or discerning knowledge from an epistemology endangered within a European cultural mind set to an African one, whites think blacks are of no value and it makes me sad that’s why I would rather embrace where I come from. The term afrocentric makes me feel safe and accepted in society.
A 2008 edition of the magazine is available for free download, as is a short promotional video. A description of the magazine reads:
The online magazine created for the young, hip and innovative person. The magazine features exclusive live interviews by 3rd Eye and D1, find out why Tex is Malawi’s new R&B sensation, download and  stream videos, listen to music by various Malawian artists, watch fashion redefined by MIA by Mia Nisbet, articles, profiles, features and forums. Included is the 2008 Unpublished Edition free for download!!! .
Another blogger to watch out for in 2010 is poet Sinthalunda, who started posting in October 2009. Sinthalunda mostly posts poems, accompanied by photographs. A recent poem posted on the blog offers advice for safe sex:
It's best to use your brain before your eyes.
Truthfully, it's better to condomise.
Though you might like to shag with oohs and sighs.
Remember it's better to condomise.
Blogger Jessica Mack manages a number of blogs, where she posts various types of writing, commentary and art. On Acacia Excerpts, she posts excerpts of poetry by well-known poets, and other well-known writings, accompanied by pictures of paintings. On another of her blogs, face value, she writes about art produced for purposes of raising awareness about social issues such as HIV/AIDS or gender-based violence. She argues that some art does not come out of the personal experience of the artist, or at least an attempt by the artist to fathom a deeper understanding of the issue. The artist ends up having nothing substantive to say, other than plain, uninspiring platitudes:
Unfortunately sometimes artists present clichés, simplistic fantasies, pure conjecture… social stigma is bad, beaten wives are miserable, orphans are sad. It must be hard to empathise with someone you know nothing about. Personally I find this uninformed art rather dull; it doesn’t engage me or add anything to my understanding. It doesn't ‘raise’ my ‘awareness’.
Writing about not just poetry but the arts more broadly is journalist-blogger Gregory Gondwe. More specifically Gondwe's posts offer updates on Malawian music, musicians, dances, and entertainment. A recent post informs readers about the tragic death, on June 30th, 2009, of a young Malawian drummer from the group Body, Mind and Soul, McEwen Manda. Gondwe reports that Manda was struck by a vehicle near Mzuzu Stadium, in Mzuzu City, and killed. He was 28, and his death went unnoticed. During his time with Body, Mind and Soul, the group won local national and regional competitions, and in 2008 toured eight European countries.
Gondwe's other posts discuss Malawi's traditional dances, two of which he informs have been designated by UNESCO as “protected heritage.” Some of the articles are also posted on facebook under the name “Drumming Pen,” self-described as a “column that comes out in Malawi's oldest weekly, the Malawi News and tackles issues to do with music and is hosted by Prof. Zungwala.” Other topics include music played at Malawian entertainment joints, quality control in Malawian music, and royalties for deceased musicians, among others.
In the next roundup, we will continue featuring Malawian bloggers who are either new, or have become active recently, and whose content reveals the issues that have been foremost on the minds of Malawians in recent months.
The country has just undergone its most trying economic period ever, with crippling shortages of foreign exchange and fuel, and thirty earthquakes in three weeks, that have killed several people, and have displaced hundreds of thousands.
Meanwhile, the Malawi government has invited Malawians to express their views on a highly controversial proposal by the government to change the national flag. Malawian bloggers have been writing and commenting on these and many other issues. That's for next time.

author: Steve Sharra


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Myanmar: Pagoda Festival · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

dawn_1o9 from Myanmar describes the scenes she witnessed at the Pagoda festival in Moe Kaung Pagoda.

author: Mong Palatino


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Myanmar: Pictures during Full Moon Day  · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

dawn_1o9 from Myanmar posts pictures during Full Moon Day of Pyar Tho. Full Moon Days are Sabbath Days when people go to monastery and pagodas.


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Myanmar: Pork intestine curry recipe · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

dawn_1o9 from Myanmar shares a Burmese cooking recipe for Pork intestine curry


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Myanmar: Shortage of prison doctors · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

The Irrawaddy reports that there is only one doctor available for every 7,314 prisoners in Myanmar. There are almost 250,000 prisoners in the country.


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Philippines: Life in evacuation centers · Global Voices
Mong Palatino

For more than two weeks, 10,000 families were housed in temporary shelters after Alert Level 4 was raised around Mayon Volcano in the Philippines. These families spent the Christmas and New Year in evacuation centers. Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines, having erupted 50 times in the past 400 years. It is located in Albay province, southeast of Luzon Island.
Mayon Volcano. From the Flickr page of Natz Tolentino Llaguno
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology released a status report on Mayon’s volcanic activity:
Alert Level 3 is in effect over Mayon, which means that the 6-km radius Permanent Danger Zone around the volcano and the 7-km Extended Danger Zone on the southeast flank of the volcano should be free from human activity because of sudden explosions that may generate hazardous volcanic flows
A short video clip showing lava flows from Mayon:
The National Disaster Coordinating Council released this update on the situation of the residents in evacuation centers:
The DSWD reported that a total of 10,080 families / 47,766 persons coming from 32 barangays in five (5) municipalities and three (3) cities in Albay were affected
As of January 02, 2009, twenty eight (28) evacuation centers are still open providing temporary shelter to the 9,470 families / 44,938 persons
UPDATE: 96 percent of evacuees have returned home already.
The situation in some shelters needs improvement:
Toilets are inadequate in evacuation camps with a present ratio of 1:45 to 1:28 per latrine (WHO standard is 20/ latrine).
Public school facilities were used as evacuation centers:
Forty five (45) schools have been designated as evacuation centers: 21 in Albay, 11 in Legazpi City, 6 in Ligao City and 7 in Tabaco City
Classes in all schools within the 8 km radius of Mayon were suspended and school authorities were advised to devise scheduling and shifting strategies that would enable pupils using these evacuation classrooms to revert to regular classes as soon as possible and for the evacuee pupils to hold classes within the premises of the evacuation school.
The Citizens’ Disaster Response Center went to temporary shelters which have not been visited by the media. Here is what the team observed:
Bagumbayan Elementary School temporary shelter
…the displaced families are beginning to feel the burdens of a life in transit. Overcrowding and strains to privacy, health and sanitation problems, lack of food, and missed income opportunities are just a few of the evacuees’ concerns.
Typically, 12 families or about 55 persons crowd in a schoolroom. There is barely enough living space in this 7 x 7-meter room. Evacuees are cramped at a density of one person in less than one square meter of space, way below the recommended 3.5 square meters of space per individual.
Evacuees generally sleep on plastic mats over concrete flooring. This makes these coldest days of the year much less bearable than normal, the evacuees said.
At the centers, families usually share a meal of rice, noodles, and canned goods provided by aid agencies. This monotonous diet was only once punctuated by a ration of fruits and other stuff on Christmas Day.
Typically, there are one or two bathing facilities in a camp. Some evacuees have to wait in line as early as 1:00 am if they want a quick shower.
Health problems now begin to surface in the evacuation camps. Colds and respiratory illnesses are common, aggravated by the cold weather. Incidents of conjunctivitis (sore eyes), which is a highly contagious infection, have been reported in at least one evacuation center.
Since many residents who need to be evacuated are farmers, the government has also ordered the evacuation of livestock animals so that the people will not return in the danger areas.
Because of the poor conditions in many evacuation centers, many residents were forced to go back to their homes to get much needed supplies
Before the 24-hour curfew was imposed, some residents, mostly male, braved entering the danger zones to collect supplies lacking in evacuation centers such as firewood, rootcrops, and vegetables.  Due to inadequate water supply and toilets, the women also tried going back to their homes during the day for laundry and personal hygiene.
cbanga360 also reported about the suffering of children in many evacuation centers:
Travesia Elementary School Evacuation Center
The “former” residents who called their home the slopes of restive, almost perfect-coned Mayon volcano, spent their first Christmas and New Year, in cramped and crowded surroundings.
In all other centers, there are many children of varying age who suffer in silence and discomfort, albeit with constant fear and uncertainty about their present predicament.
Tonyo Cruz identifies drop-off centers and bank account details for donations through the Bicol Movement for Disaster Response.


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Russian TV Shows Cartoon Putin and Medvedev Singing Limericks · Global Voices
Vadim Isakov

A cartoon showing Russian president and prime minister singing limericks about the current issues in Russian politics became a hot topic on the blogosphere. The cartoon was aired on the state-controlled TV channel ORT as a part of the New Year show .


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The Year that was in Madagascar: Part II · Global Voices
Mialy Andriamananjara

Lova Rakotomalala, in his overview of Madagascar in the first months of 2009, the first of this three-part series, wrote about the events leading up to the coup d'etat that brought Andry Rajoelina, former mayor of Antananarivo, to power.  Here, we continue were Lova left off.
May 2009 saw more protests from Ravalomanana's supporters and more repression from the armed forces. Ravalomanana had resigned in March and fled to South Africa. Rajoelina was now in power.  The power struggle was at its highest, and took place both within Madagascar and on the international stage. In Addis Abeba, the international community was doing its best to extract Madagascar from its political mire.
“Representatives of the UN security council and the African Union are meeting for a “Madagascar contact group” in Addis Ababa to ensure that the nations take a common position in pushing for a return to constitutional order in Madagascar. Although each Malagasy political party announced that they had representatives present at the meeting, it turns out that none of the opposition parties were present during the decision-making process meeting.”
Meanwhile more arrests were happening, first the head of security at the high constitutional court was arrested, then Manandafy Rakotonirina, appointed Prime Minister by the exiled President Marc Ravalomanana, was arrested on charges of “illegally declaring himself as prime minister, vandalism & possessing weapons”, as reported by the Cyber Observer.
On a happier note, May 2009 was a great time for citizen media in Madagascar: Razily, the flag waving protester whose arrest was taped by bystanders and whose unknown fate had attracted international attention on the net, was freed.
Courtesy of radotiana.blaogy.com
Solana Larsen, Global Voices’ Managing Editor, interviewed Tahina's FOKO who put in place FOKO Ushahidi.
“With Foko Ushahidi, ordinary citizens can now upload reports of unrest around the country and have them added immediately to an online map. Tahina installed the system himself with technical help from abroad and is in charge of managing the hub through which the SMS messages pass.  A team of bloggers, including Lalatiana and Stephane (known as Pakysse), check reports for accuracy after they have been posted.”
Sadly it seemed that the SMS alert system was now something that Madagascar needed in order to keep track of all the incidents and unrest rocking the country.
In July 2009, the second Malagasy BarCamp took place, with the presence of Lova Rakotomalala, GV author and FOKO member.
Understandably due to the political situation and the heavy-handedness of the repression, the event was heavily focused on the lack of freedom of speech in Madagascar. Many journalists and bloggers had received threats, but nonetheless, participation was high. The highlight came when bloggers and twitterers gave their personal testimonies about the crisis. Lova summarizes:
“Andry explained that his thirst for raw information drove him to be where trouble was brewing. Jentilisa explained that it was very odd that on black Monday (Jan 26th) people would announce that a building was burning even before it actually happened, hence suggesting that some events were probably planned and not just random acts of protests. Avylavitra told a story of how he feared for his life on March 28th when a soldier hold him at gun point and demanded his camera. Jaona from Fianaratsoa explained how his blog was mentioned at a public meeting as a threat to social order in Fianarantsoa and should be shut down. Many other bloggers/twitterers shared similar stories of major hardships while covering the crisis. Thierry Andriamirado explained the increased relevance of online social networks in dispatching news about the crisis. Thierry was the first to exhaustively live-tweet the first tragic event of the crisis, “Black Monday,” and explained that he felt compelled to share the stories in real-time for a time-stamped digital record of the events.”
August 2009
Former Presidents Ravalomanana, Zafy, Ratsiraka and current HAT President Andry Rajoelina came with great difficulty to a power sharing agreement in Maputo, Mozambique.  The agreement focused on Ravalomanana's return, as he is now exiled in South Africa, on the organization of elections in 15 months, and on how to split the transitional government ministries between the factions. Nj elaborates on the fate reserved to Ravalomanana in the agreements.
“Ravalomanana indique qu’il n’est plus Président de la République mais ancien Président, par rapport aux accords de Maputo et non pas par rapport à tour de passe-passe que la HAT avait essayé de nous faire gober. On ne pourra donc plus dire qu’il est “démissionnaire” ou “déchu”. Il est juste l’ancien Président de la feue IIIème République et désormais “Sénateur à vie”.
En outre, il a également demandé à ses partisans de stopper les manifestations au Magro, les légalistes étant relativement disciplinés on imagine que cela serait suivi sans problèmes.”
Other bloggers, like Achille52, were frustrated because they think the agreements still left too much uncertainty.
“On esperait tellement de ces accords qu'on est degoute de leur soi-disant avancee a la con ! Les principaux problemes tels que le retour de Marc Ravalomanana pose toujours probleme, et la nomination des postes de la transition va etre une bataille, car d'autres personnalites dans le pays veulent leur part du gateau.
On annonce des elections dans 15 mois, mais qui en garantira la transparence ? On peut compter sur le gouvernement actuel pour nous mitonner un truc a la congolaise !”
Citoyenne Malgache deplores the presence of the same old politicians during the many political crises in Madagascar.
“Les changements qu’ils prônent consistent à rester par tous les moyens dans le cercle des dirigeants, jusqu’à la mort, et
même au-delà. Par instinct de reproduction, ils transmettent leur savoir faire à leur progéniture qui ont les mêmes gueules,
les mêmes oreilles.”
September 2009
Andry Rajoelina who had planned to make a speech at the UN General Assembly was barred from the UN pulpit when members of the SADC community threatened to walk out and then demanded that the assembly vote whether he should be allowed to speak. In the end, he was not allowed to speak. Twitterers followed the drama and ensuing confusion in direct.
As commented by Alain Rajaonarivony :
“L’épisode de l’ONU est symptomatique. Tandis que les Malgaches de l’intérieur étaient soumis au black-out, y compris les officiels, la diaspora et ceux qui avaient la chance de se connecter (une infime minorité dans la Grande ile) pouvaient suivre en direct la navigation hasardeuse de la délégation de la HAT au sein de l’immeuble des Nations Unies et les «empêchements» d’Andry Rajoelina le 24 et 25 septembre. “.
Still, repression continues despite or because of the UN fiasco. Lova writes:
“In the meantime, unrest has once again broken in the aftermath of the UN fiasco. Investgasy posted on twitter today:
#Madagascar: shootings in Anosy (Tana) right now, armed 4×4 are everywhere . The report was later confirmed by Reuters , reporting tear gas launching and warning shots fired at demonstrators.”
October 2009
Pakysse of FOKO was invited to the United Nations Summit on Climate Change, the G20 summit and live blogged the event.
Pakysse wondered at the lack of action from Malagasy officials resulting from the conference:
“Depuis la conference organisee par les Nations Unies sur les changements climatiques, l’etat malagasy est cense sensibiliser la population sur le danger que porte les feux de brousses, la secheresse dans le sud et les differents cyclones car cela a a un impact sur  la couche d’ozone et la vie de tous les jours de la nature et de l’homme
Nombreux sont les hommes d’etat et les journalistes MALAGASY qui etaient dans le meme avion que ma personne pour assister a la conference proprement dite mais la question qui se pose est la suivante: ETAIT-IL NECESSAIRE DE GASPILLER AUTANT D’ARGENT POUR UN DEPLACEMENT SANS RESULTAT?”
There were many Malagasy statesmen and journalists in the same plane I took, they were traveling to participate in the conference, but the question I am asking is the following : WAS IT REALLY NECESSARY TO WASTE SO MUCH MONEY FOR A TRIP WITHOUT RESULTS?”
Monja Roindefo, Andry Rajoelina's prime minister and companion in arms was sacked, as part of the application of the Maputo II agreements which demand the nomination of a consensus Prime Minister. Wikipedia has an outline of the events, including Monja Roindefo's efforts to stay in power:
“Roindefo took the matter to the Council of State on 12 October 2009, requesting that it annul the decree appointing Mangalaza; he argued that the procedure was flawed and that the faction leaders needed to sign the agreement in order for it to become valid. The Council of State accordingly suspended the decree on 15 October, but lifted the suspension and refused to annul the appointment in its final ruling on 22 October 2009.”
Alain Rajaonarivony commented Monja Roindefo's eviction
“Andry Rajoelina, quant à lui, a justifié dans une émission télévisée dans la soirée du vendredi 9 son divorce d’avec son compagnon et complice. Ce serait l’intérêt supérieur de la nation, le désastre économique imminent, qui l’aurait poussé à prendre cette décision. C’est la condition sine qua non pour que le boycott international cesse. En fait, la vraie condition est un retour à l’état de droit.  “
On a lighter note, the Afrobasket Women 2009 was organized in Madagascar. Twitterers and bloggers followed avidly. R1lita hoped to see Madagascar regain some of its former glory on the African continent :
“It will be interesting to see Madagascar play big nations of basketball such as Mali, the defending champ, Nigeria, Angola or Senegal which are more experienced and used to international competitions. Some of their players are playing out of their homeland in Europe or in the U.S. Let’s say the chances for Madagascar to reach within the top 3 spots are slight. So, any win will be important for the Malagasy team and it will strengthen the motivation and confidence of all the players and the whole nation behind them. The games will be daunting but also a must-take stage if we want to improve to the next level and reach again a rank that once we had (Gold Medal during the 1970 FIBA Championship in Togo).”
November 2009
November 8 saw the four protagonists : Rajoelina, Ravalomanana, Ratsiraka and Zafy, reaching yet again another power sharing agreement in Addis Abeba, which stipulated that there should now be two co-presidents, and the ministers would be shared amongs the four factions. Avylavitra posted the names of the newly designated high officials.  The blogosphere reacted with a mix of cynicism and relief, wondering how and if the agreements would be respected and applied. Jentilisa worried that the bigger issue of the military involvement in political affairs was not being talked about.
“Averiko farany indray angamba fa ny tena tolona hafa, ankoatra ny famitana ity vanim-potoan'ny fihazohazoana ity, dia ireto miaramila mihevitra fa tsy hisy hahala azy amin'ny toerany ireto mihitsy fa ry zareo ihany no mifanendry fa ny mpitondra sivily dia manaiky fotsiny ihany. Anjaran'ny tsirairay ny mieritreritra satria efa masaka andohan'izy ireo fa tsy hanaiky hofehezin'ny fahefana sivily intsony ry zareo hatramin'ny nanafihany ny minisiteran'ny fiarovana tamin'ny volana martsa”.
Echoing Lova's post on Francafrique’s role in the crises of former French colonies, Nj finds similarities between other former French colonies and the Malagasy case.
“Madagascar s’est tout simplement faite standardiser comme toutes “colonies africaines” de reny malala : un clan présidentiel issu d’un Coup d’Etat, avalisé par des élections truquées qui devient une véritable monarchie aux ordres de la France pour des décennies. Accords de Transition, élections législatives, élections présidentielles, force d’interposition….Il suffit de regarder l’actualité de nos voisins africains, “anciennes” colonies françaises pour prévoir l’avenir que la France réserve à Madagascar”.
Achille52 reported twice on Madagascar's rosewood being pillaged and even gaves names the alleged smugglers. He calculated how much rosewood illegal exploitation yields and his calculations were backed by Mongabay News:
“on arrive à un total farmineux de 120 000 000 de dollars et 41 600 000 de dollars qui sont gelés. […]on n’a aucune garantie que cet argent sera bien utilisé, et de ce que l’état en fera s’il met la main dessus.
120 000 000 de dollars !! […]Imaginez combien de chose on pourrait, en fait, cette somme est équivalente à 60 000 FMG pour chaque malgache de Madagascar. Et dire que 24 personnes se sont partagés une somme pareille !”
“One comes to a surprising amount of $120,000,000 and $41,600,000 which are frozen. […] one cannot guarantee that this money will be well utilized, and what the state will do with it if it ever gets its hands on it. $120,000,000 […] Imagine what one could do with this money for each Malagasy of Madagascar. And to think 24 persons shared that amount of money! “
To top it all,  a freighter sunk off the coast of Madagascar in November 09:
“spilling toxic waste in the process and killing migrating whales and causing illness among the fishermen community. Although the disaster has been reported in a few media recently, the ship started to sink two months ago as Malagasy bloggers signaled on their blogs back in early September.
Tomavana wrote on his blog (fr):
En plus d’écarter le drame écologique du Sud de l’île des actualités nationales, la controverse politique autour de ces nouvelles nominations pose la question du suivi de ce dossier sensible
The political drama not only steers the focus away from this tragic event but it makes one wonder who will be accountable for following up and taking charge of the issue.”

author: Mialy Andriamananjara


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Afghanistan: Attacks on the base again  · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Nick Fielding reports on the suicide bomb attack in Khost Province in eastern Afghanistan that killed seven CIA officers and wounded six others in an eloquent and bloody response by Islamist militants.

author: Adil Nurmakov


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Bahamas: Day of Absence  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Nicolette Bethel posts a series of musings about her Day of Absence – “a day to remember and recognize Bahamian artists and cultural workers, who go largely unsung, unnoticed and unremembered, and who are generally assumed not to exist in this nation”; Bahama Pundit offers a critique.


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Bangladesh: Progress Of Television · Global Voices
Rezwan

J Rahman at Mukti looks back at the progress of Television in Bangladesh:  “By 2006, nearly half the households in Bangladesh had a TV, compared with less than 0.2% in 1975″.


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Bhutan: Failing Democracy · Global Voices
Rezwan

“If democracy means ‘Of the people, By the People, For the people,’ then democracy in Bhutan must be failing,” comments Bhutanese blogger Dipika.


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Bolivia: Mining Industry Growth in 2009 · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Despite the global economic crisis, Bolivia experienced a 13% growth in the mining sector in 2009 writes Mario Durán of Palabras Libres [es].


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Brazil: Net-citizens unite to track floods · Global Voices
Diego Casaes

Blogger Cristiana Soares, in collaboration with net-citizens, launched Projeto Enchentes [Project Floods, pt], a platform for tracking — and gathering information about — floods in Brazil. The project counts with a collaborative map created by Henrique Brandão.

author: Diego Casaes


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Caribbean: Farewell 2009 · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Caribbean bloggers bid 2009 farewell – BeachLime says: “The only sure thing that's going to happen in 2010 is that it will prove to be a challenging one for Bermudians”; Belizean provides a comprehensive end of year review and Caribbean Free Radio tells the story of her year in pictures.


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China: Reciprocity and trust · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

maryannodonnell has written an interesting article on her observation of reciprocity and trust relation in Shenzhen.


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China: Unblocking and blocking · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

C.A Yeung from Under the Jacaranda Tree reported on the unblocking of several websites, such as Youtube, Picasa, and etc. But the most reason update is that the blocking has been resumed, as C. Custer from China Geek pointed out the unblocking must be temporary.


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Blogging about Culture and Interracial Marriages · Global Voices
Bhumika Ghimire

As people around the world get closer through modern technology, and cultural and racial barriers give way to mutual understanding and respect; and interracial marriages are becoming more common. A number of mixed race and religion families are sharing their experiences in the blogosphere. To look at a culture and country through the eyes of an outsider is a learning experience.
At InterracialMarriage, the blogger-an Australian male is married to a Chinese woman who happens to be an atheist. Writing about the way they celebrated Christmas as family with their son, he finds himself in a fix trying to make sense of his wife's atheist views and belief in traditional Chinese rituals.
“Ms B may not believe in God because of a lack of proof, but this does not stop her believing in Luck, or in Feng Shui, or in Numerology, or in any other number of cultish beliefs that seem to have widespread basis within the Chinese community.
I sometimes notice Ms B performing strange rituals at home to ward off Bad Luck, and she has even cost us a lot of money in re-positioning our front and back doors, in order to capture Good Luck in our home through good Feng Shui.
Now I too see no basis in these beliefs, but I tolerate them for Ms B's sake. I guess this is what she too does for me with my religion.”
When it comes to a foreign culture reading between lines does not come easily, it seems; even when you marry someone from that culture. But what do you do when you try to embrace your significant other's cultural practices and end up standing out among colleagues?
At GoriGirl the blogger, a white woman married to an Indian Bengali man, shares her experience of “wearing sindoor as a white woman”. Hindu married women wear Sindoor (vermilion power) on their forehead and this practice is common in many parts of India and Nepal. But how about the practice in Washington DC?
“No, my problem with wearing sindoor is that most days I’m headed into work where there are a fair number of Indian people. And none of them wear traditional Indian clothing, except for the occasional short kurta – certainly there isn’t any sindoor-wearing going on among the married ladies! One older Bengali coworker even expressed amazement that I followed the “old-fashioned” tradition of wearing a loha – a gold-plated iron bangle that serves as a wedding ring among Bengali women – on my left wrist daily.
…………On the third hand (yes, yes, I know), the last time I wore sindoor to the office, my boss wanted to know if I needed a band-aid for the cut on my head. Yeah. Yeah, I know. Does anyone else have problems with this?”
Standing out was also in mind of TheGoriWifeLife blogger, who is an American married to a Pakistani man. She writes about what she is wearing while visiting Pakistan:
“This time, I brought two pairs of jeans and a few shirts because I thought that at least around the house I wanted to be comfortable, since that is my daily uniform back home. But somehow I've ended up wearing jeans paired with a Pakistani shirt and dupatta when we go out probably as many times as I've worn shalwar kameez. We've even gone on several walks around the neighborhood and it feels totally normal and at ease.
Somehow things seem different this time.”
Difficulty of understanding and being accepted in a different culture is something interracial couples face regularly. Sometimes they also face questions about the basis of their relationship, and when marriage and immigration status get mixed up it is not comfortable.
At IndiaTies, blogger Heather Lurdkee, an American married to an Indian questions people who see interracial marriage as a status symbol or a way to get permanent residency status.
” For my husband, being married to me (a white girl) isn't much of a status symbol – he didn't go out looking specifically for an American or a white girl. He didn't “need me” in order to get somewhere in life. We just happened to be at the right place at the right time and things worked out.
However, some of my husband's Indian friends have expressed their desire to find a white girl to my husband. One friend (from India – who recently came to the States) actually said to my husband, “Wow, you've got it made, I have to find a white girl like you…” And he was serious! “
The trial and tribulations of interracial couples show a mirror to how far we-as a civilization have come in accepting and respecting differences. These blogs are part of that mirror and are also a tool in cultural and social understanding.

author: Bhumika Ghimire


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Featured Author: Layal Al Khatib · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Lebanese blogger Layal Al Khatib, who also goes by the nickname “NightS”, wants to make sure that languages that are read right to left (RTL), including Arabic, look attractive when viewed on computer screens. One of her current projects is called RTL This, which according to the site:
this blog will focus on how to turn anything to be displayed in RTL. Basically the focus will be on the Web. We'll be “RTLing” WordPress, Drupal, Blogger, Joomla or any HTML/CSS based webpage template. In addition to widgets or badges offered by some online services or anything you might want to “RTL”.
She is also actively involved with Global Voices in Arabic as a a volunteer translator, and recently added Global Voices author to her list of titles.
In addition, Layal also attended the 2nd Arab Bloggers Meeting held in her hometown of Beirut, a gathering that was co-sponsored by Global Voices.
She also writes actively on her personal blog Lebanese nightS, in which she recently published her contribution to the regional project Kolena Laila, and posts updates on her Twitter account @nightS.


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Haiti: New Year & Independence · Global Voices
Fabienne Flessel

In Haiti, January 1st 2010 was the date of the double celebration of both New Year's day and the 206th anniversary of the National Independence. Haiti Connexion Network posts a cheerful slideshow entitled “Bonne Fête Haïti Chérie”.

author: Fabienne Flessel


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India: The 3 Idiots Copyright Controversy · Global Voices
Rezwan

Law and Other Things, a blog about Indian law, discusses the copyright controversy regarding the screenplay of the Bollywood blockbuster ‘3 idiots’.

author: Rezwan


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Kazakhstan: Kyrgyz special agents and murder of a journalist · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Noah Tucker reports on a leaked information that the Kazakh authorities allegedly believe they see three officers of the Kyrgyz National Security Service as suspects in the murder of Kyrgyz journalist Gennadiy Pavluk in Almaty last month.


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Kazakhstan: Relatives of Political Prisoners Criticize Rights Activists · Global Voices
Adil Nurmakov

Andrey of neweurasia.net translates the RFE/RL's oundtable discussion on Kazakh human rights organizations, which are being criticized by relatives of political prisoners.


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Kenya: video of bicycle repair man with home made tools · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

At the Afrigadget blog they share a video  of a bicycle repair man showing and explaining the use of his home made tools as he does his work in a Nairobi market.


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Killing Kuka: Timorese Youth Gunned Down · Global Voices
Keta Haluha

On Monday 28 December Kuka Lebre was shot and killed, and 2009 ended in tragedy for the Lebre family.
Baldir Cesar do Nascimento Lebre Correia, known by his friends and family as “Kuka”, was just 25 years old.
It is bitter irony that Kuka survived the Santa Cruz massacre as a 7 year old in 1991.  During this event 200-300 protesters were gunned down and killed at a funeral procession for another young man, killed by the police of the occupying power – President Suharto's Indonesia.  Having survived this ordeal and living to see independence from Indonesia, Kuka fell victim to his own community's police service.
Kuka Lebre 1984-2009
Since the Indonesian invasion in 1975 a lot of young people have suffered from violent death in the former Portuguese colony of Timor-Leste, but Kuka's passing, while mundane in some ways, is unique in others.
The blogosphere first became aware of Kuka's death when Timor-Leste's largest Opposition Party, the Frente Revolucionária de Timor-Leste Independente (FRETILIN) issued a press release via its Parliamentary bench blog, Bancada FRETILIN, calling for an investigation into a possible police shooting.
This press release, issued on Tuesday 29 December 2009.
Tuir informasaun neebe bancada parlamentar FRETILIN simu, ohin dader jovem ida mate tanba hetan tiru horikalan iha insidente violensia neebe mosu iha festa ida nia laran iha salaun Delta Nova, Delta Comoro, Dili. Jovem ida tan hetan tiru kanek no baixa hela iha Hospital Nasional Guido Valadares iha Dili.  Iha tempo hanesan agentes PNTL tenke tu’un ba fatin neeba halo intervensaun atu hapara konflitu violente neebe mosu iha festa fatin.
According to information that the FRETILIN bench has received this morning one youth was killed last evening as a result of being shot during a violent incident during a party at the Delta Nova Rooms, Delta Comoro, Dili. One other youth was shot and wounded and remains in Guido Valadares National Hospital Dili.
The press release continued by stating that:
Ita hare ona to’o ohin loron katak investigasaun barak ba atuasaun polisial la lao to’o hotu, la iha kredibilidade, no la iha resultadu ba familia no vitima sira.
Until the present day we have witnessed that many investigations into police actions do not reach completion, lack credibility, and provide no results for victims and their families.
On New Year's Day 2010 the Timor Lorosea Nacao blog posted press coverage from one of Dili's big daily newspapers on Kuka's death.  In this posting the Timor Post describes what are the reported circumstance of Kuka's killing.  While the investigation is under way it appears as though Kuka was shot by Timorese police (PNTL) officers responding to a violent clash at the Delta Nova party/conference rooms in western Dili.
Interestingly, the Delta Nova is where well heeled Timorese have wedding parties and other special events – suggesting it was an important crowd of people present.  Kuka was also the son of an important and well known family based in Bemori, central Dili. In a strange twist of fate Kuka is the nephew of Fransisco Guterres, Secretary of State for Security – the politician responsible for the police.
The Timor Post, as put online by Timor Lorosae Nacao, features this headline,
Baldir Mate ho Bala Polisia: Familia Ejiji Team Investigasaun Independente
Baldir Dead by Police Bullet: Family Demands Independent Investigation Team
The story states that at 2300 28 December Kuka was shot during a violent incident in which police had been called to restore order.  According to the report a police officer shot the unarmed Kuka during the affair.  Despite being shot in the stomach Kuka survived the initial wound but was not however taken immediately to hospital as the police had blockaded the premises. According to an interview with Kuka's brother, the Timor Post reports that Kuka was eventually taken to the national hospital at 2355 but died on the operating table at approximately 0130 29 December.
Dili District Commander Pedro Belo later confirmed that a police officer had in fact shot Kuka, and the Secretary of State for Security Fransisco Guterres announced an investigation. Accident, unprofessional or malicious act  – the matter of PNTL carrying, pointing and firing weapons without any consequence, while not common, is regular in Timor-Leste.
On 4 December 2009 Tempo Semanal, a national weekly newspaper, video blogged an interview with a very annoyed maverick FRETILIN Member of Parliament, David Ximenes.  Ximenes was angry over the fact that a PNTL officer had shot and seriously injured a youth a party the evening before.
David Ximenes
The matter of how the Timorese police procures, stores, manages and uses its firearms is of longstanding and contentious debate in Timor-Leste.  Critically, when weapons are misused penalties are generally not forthcoming.
On 28 November 2002 PNTL shot and killed a youth at a demonstration outside the main police station in the eastern town of Baucau.  A week later on 4 December 2002 a riot occured in Dili and several people were shot dead by PNTL.  In 2006 PNTL and rogue elements of PNTL shot and killed a number of people in the Political Crisis of that year. Few if any police officers have been penalised for any of these, and other similar events.
One has to question if the killing of Kuka, a prominent and popular youth, will cause the Timorese establishment to question the matter of how guns are managed in Timor-Leste.  It would appear from the level of concern that it might.
A Twitterer observed that both President Jose Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao met with Kuka's family.
PM and President Meet Victim's Family
Interestingly,  the same twitterer and other sources say that President Jose Ramos-Horta suggested that the Government could be sued if the officer is found at fault.
President: Family Can Sue
Below: Some photos from Kuka's family home before the funeral.  They tell a story of public attitudes towards the police in Timor-Leste.
Police Your Mentality is Like An Animal
The State of Timor Buys Guns and Kills the People
What are you Doing UNPOL? (UNPOL= United Nations Police)

author: Keta Haluha


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Nepal:  Maoists And The Constitution Amendment Bill  · Global Voices
Rezwan

“Today the Maoists decided not to support the seventh amendment bill of the interim constitution,” informs Nepali. In an update Nepali informed that they have made an U-turn and confirmed their support to amend the constitution, later in the day.


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Poland: Social Network’s Logo “Raises Controversy” · Global Voices
Sylwia Presley

The largest Polish social network, Nasza-Klasa (‘Our Class’ – based around the idea of networking with school peers), appeared in the mainstream media several times last year. In summer 2009 it was featured as #19 on the Techcrunch list of main social networks, valued from $90 up to $553 million pending the measurement metrics. The same summer a resident of Gryfin won a case against Nasza-Klasa [PL] after he found out that someone had set up a fictional profile with his actual photos and personal data. After another court case it has also been legally bonded [PL] to ensure that users do not upload photos without appropriate license. When the social network was celebrating its third birthday in November 2009, questions were also raised [PL] about censorship and moderation of its user accounts. The growing scepticism towards the network became apparent when offices, ministries and the police banned their employees from using the website [PL], which is said to have been useful in crime investigations in the past. Statistics published today [PL] related to the usage of social networks in Poland show  the increasing popularity of Facebook as opposed to Nasza-Klasa.
Nasza-Klasa logo today
Yesterday, Gazeta.pl daily news portal posted a short article [PL] informing its readers about a discussion of their portal's users around Nasza-Klasa logo, with gradually disappearing characters. This redesign, conducted during the last few days, was positioned as potentially an attempt of network administrators to allude to the recent theft of the sign from Auschwitz Nazi death camp museum. Gazeta.pl in their article clearly stated quoting of their readers and added that Nasza-Klasa has denied any connection to the recent case, however the article itself raised serious questions about foolishness of those speculations and the fact they were published in the mainstream media.
User glupie polaczki states [PL] today:
They should close down this anti-Semitic portal
Supported by opinion [PL] of another user, fqw:
It's gone now. How can they mock in such an anti-Semitic way!? how…I ask you…?
Others criticize the article itself. Ols85 mentions [PL]:
ONLY HERE – Gazeta.pl editors are all excited. Pulitzer guaranteed, I think…
SOber states [PL]:
It's always the best move to add on to something ideology, and afterwards strongly believe in it.
The majority of voices mocks the content of the article referring to more rational reason of the logo change – re-branding. Titus explains [PL]:
Honestly, it requires a great deal of bad will and inner need to seek conspiracy to associate the fact of “renovation” on nk with the theft of the sign… It was apparent from the beginning that it was a simple attempt to change the logo pictured in a funny and interesting way.
User autor autor sums up those comments saying [PL]:
This information is a final proof that Poles are functionally illiterate people. They cannot comprehend what is being said to them in media programmes, and they cannot grasp a simple message “we are changing our logo”, displayed in a nice way.
Local social media specialist, Socjalistka, dug out two links [PL] to announcements that Nasza-Klasa had acquired nk.pl domain, which supports the version of re-branding.

author: Sylwia Presley


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Slovakia, Hungary: Happy New Year! · Global Voices
Marietta Le

The relations between the two neighboring countries, Slovakia and Hungary, went bad last year, especially because of the so-called “language law” introduced in Slovakia. Hungarian and Slovak people could even see their politicians involving an EU institution, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) into their discussion.
At the end of 2009, Hungarian and Slovak citizens started an online campaign which will turn into more visible formats in January 2010. A Facebook group called Hungarians and Slovaks (HUN, SLO, ENG) already exists “For the good relations between Hungarians and Slovaks!”, and now they're also supporting a new group called Štastný nový rok, Slovensko! / Boldog Új Évet Magyarország! (SLO, HUN, “Happy New Year, Slovakia!/Happy New Year, Hungary!).
The description of the group — which has its status updates in Slovak and Hungarian — says (HUN, SLO):
Who wants to live in continuous tension with his neighbour? What's the reason for always looking for the other's faults, and how is it disturbing if someone's always observing our faults?!
The opposition is seemingly becoming more and more serious, and to ease the tension deriving from it we're initiating communication aiming the society, because our conviction is that the tension is mostly generated by actual politics.
We submit that in the judgement of each other, the two countries’ civil society can be influenced positively by the courtesy of a bilateral campaign. […]
The main goal of this campaign is to spread a simple New Year's message in both countries through all channels of communication, and involve NGOs and ordinary citizens in saying Happy New Year to each other. For this two websites were started for Hungarian and Slovakian supporters: boldogujevetmagyarorszag.sk is the Hungarian site ending with .sk, the Slovak country code, and stastnynovyrokslovensko.hu is for Slovak-speaking people signed with the Hungarian country code. Also, two videos have recorded for each country:
So far, ReTRo is the only blogger who has commented on the start-up in Hungary by writing a short story (HUN) about neighbours hating each other, but whose relationship starts getting better by a snow bank shoveled away by chance from the hated neighbour's house.
Maybe he wasn't awake yet, or the snow just covered his dislike, or simply he overlooked it, but he didn't notice that he had shoveled the snow not in front of the neighbour's gate, but away from it. He shrugged it away by thinking this would be the good act for the week. He explained this to Sanyi, when she simply said he was stupid to work in the place of the hated neighbour.
In the evening when they got home, the snow was freshly swept away from their gate. The neighbour has thanked him. It went like this for three days. They met on Saturday first. With snow shovels in their hands. They greeted each other. They started to chat…
By Monday the snow melted. Something ended up…
…or has just begun.
[…]
Oh, yes and there's a start-up just launched by the name „Boldog Új Évet Magyarország! – Štastný Nový rok, Slovensko!”. We could start with snow shoveling…

author: Marietta Le


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Sri Lanka: Corruption in Campaign  · Global Voices
Rezwan

“Without an independent and reliable Elections Commission there will be abuse,” comments Indi.ca while discussing the corruption in campaign of the upcoming presidential elections in Sri Lanka.


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Taiwan: Suhua Freeway Project Deferred · Global Voices
Sylvia Zheng

Suhua Freeway Project has been in dispute for more than a decade. On 22 of December, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) opted for a plan to improve existing highway. However, we are yet to see if this decision will put an end to the controversy and path the way to sustainable development in eastern Taiwan.
The existing Suao-Hualien (Suhua) highway serves as a pivotal connection between Taiwan east and west. The highway runs through steep cliffs along the coastlines – one of the most beautiful sceneries in eastern Taiwan. Yet, driving on this road can be very dangerous because of nasty curves, climbs, falling rocks and landslides, especially in typhoon season or when earthquake occurs.
In order to develop the eastern coastal areas and ensure road safety, the Taiwan government began to plan for the “Suhua Freeway Project” (cn) in the 1990s. However, the project is full of controversies, leading to the policy gridlock for a decade. Supporters of the project argue that the new Freeway will improve road safety and the economic condition in eastern Taiwan, while oppositional voices are critical of its devastating effects on environment and indigenous communities.
Supporters are mostly believers in developmentalism. For example, Lin Zhou-shui, one of the founders of Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party, compares the dwellers in eastern Taiwan to the shepherds in Africa in his article, “An Atypical Argumentation: Suhua Freeway and Bellicose Bourgeois”:
在National Geographic電視節目看到黑人政府認真取締可憐牧人的牛羊進入保育區時，常感嘆，他們統治菁英把西方中產階級價值內化得真深；更感嘆那些溫馴的窮 牧人為什麼不向高貴的歐美中產階級嗆聲：富裕的你們把麥田牧場復育成野生動物保護區，在經濟上豈不遠比我們萬倍承擔得起？為什麼要我們忍受飢餓來維護你們 中產階級休閒觀光的樂趣和文化品味？當聽到感嘆台灣西部開發使原始野趣及保育生物多樣性的價值盡失，並主張東部生活愈來愈艱苦的百姓忍受回家都不安全的處境也要為大家保留淨土時，我就想到National Geographic的非洲節目。
Another supporter, KuenWei seeks for a balance between environmental and developmental value:
「我們不能否認每個人都有追求安全、想要回家的公平性存在，但是因為交通成本的問題，住在花蓮台東的朋友，這兩項在些階段來說，對他們是遙不可及的夢想…後山是個聚落分散的地方，運輸無疑相當不便，…從環保層面來看，蘇花高是不公且不義的事情，因為它會破壞台灣上千年來美麗的後山景觀，也會使台灣整體環境受到影響，不過環保不是唯一的價值，就像是我們不能夠只有愛情沒有麵包一樣，花蓮的發展的確遠不及西部。」
On the other hand, oppositional voices are skeptical about the economic benefit of the Freeway Project. Having lived in Hualien for years and completed his master degree there, Smallove, a blogger who partakes in the locally-and-officially-supported campaign, “Sustainable East“, asserts firmly on his blog:
「政客需要蘇花高來衝選票！
砂石業者需要蘇花高來賣砂石！
投資者需要蘇花高來炒地皮！
國工局需要蘇花高來讓自己有事情作！
資訊不清楚的人需要蘇花高來當救世主！
因為他們都不知道，花蓮要的是更好的生活水平，甚至要超過西部平原的生活水平，如果在花蓮就能滿足所有所有生活所需，教育水平夠，就業市場夠，醫療水準夠，再加上花蓮那麼好的生活環境，那…花蓮人還需要到西部去嗎？
所以，我不需要，謝謝」
The secretary-general of the Taiwan Green Party, Pan Han-shen also opposes the project:
「要一條平安回家的路並沒有錯，怕的是診錯病因下錯藥，況且回家的路不該只有一條，蘇花高不該被視為花東發展的萬靈丹。其實，蘇花高的南澳和平蘇花替路段，已確定不是國道，不使用國道基金，那麼重新編列的三百億元億算，或是未來整條完工所需的一兩千億元，如果都要給花蓮人，可以是多重選擇題，而不是蘇花高的是非題。」
The website, “Suhua Bakery”, is established to support sustainable development in eastern Taiwan, it argues against the project and maintains that:
「一般贊成興建的聲音，大多從蘇花公路的安全性、運輸、聯外需求、觀光發展等面向發聲，但這畢竟是公共事務，使用的是全國人民的血汗錢，…東部地區因為地處邊陲，缺乏製造業或高科技產業完整的上下游產業，就算有了高速公路，對產業仍然沒有吸引力，當產業東移的政策目標註定達不到，蘇花高也必定造成不符成本的浪費。」
The recent decision made by MOTC seemed to put an end to the decade long dispute. Among the five proposals put forward by the Directorate General of Highways (DGH), the MOTC chose a combination of proposal No. 2 and 3 on 22 Dec. 2009. The plan is to improve the existing highway and ensure road safety in dangerous section, while at the same time leave room for for further upgrading of the highway into an expressway in the future. The current decision, in partial correspondence with Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria, are likely to make the possibility of the sustainable development in eastern Taiwan (as advocated by “Sustainable East” ) much more foreseeable. However, the dispute has been going on for more than a decade, and it recurs whenever the political climate changes. Whether eastern Taiwan will follow the path of sustainable development is yet inconclusive. Time will tell!

author: Sylvia Zheng


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Trinidad & Tobago: Attillah in Manningland · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“I am glad I came to see what is inside these walls.  Being inside makes me feel even more of an outsider in this PNM black elite universe”: Thanks to an unlikely cocktail party invitation, Trinidadian blogger and activist Attillah Springer ventures down the rabbit hole, right into the Prime Minister's residence.

author: Janine Mendes-Franco


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Trinidad & Tobago: No Hope?  · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

“Many who I spoke with in South Trinidad were more concerned about how they would survive 2010 than what they would accomplish”: KnowTnT.com says the one thing glaringly missing in 2010 is hope.


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Trinidad & Tobago: Same Old… · Global Voices
Janine Mendes-Franco

Trinidadian diaspora blogger Jumbie's Watch says it may be a New Year, but “i’s dee same ol’ khaki pants.”


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UAE: Burj Dubai Opens with Twitter Fanfare  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Burj Dubai by Joi Ito – under Creative Commons
Dubai has pulled all the stops to signal the opening of the world's tallest tower – Burj Dubai. The 828 metre (2,717 ft) supertall skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, is being opened with much fanfare despite the doom and gloom that has surrounded the emirate's economy in recent weeks.
Tweets started drumming up the excitement since the early morning making Burj Dubai now a trending topic on the social networking site – despite the change in the skyscraper's name to Burj Khalifa. Burj means tower in Arabic, and Khalifa is the name of the President of the UAE Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Dubai's very own ruler Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoom, who is also Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and a Twitter user, just wrote:
Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid's Tweet
Neighbouring oil rich Abu Dhabi recently bailed out Dubai, which is restructuring its loans – pumping $10 billion into the debt-struck emirate.  Indian Thejas V R did not miss out on this fact in his comment:
Away from the economic comments, Twitter users were in awe. Forrest Goodson comments:
And Maram Sami says the opening is amazing:
Twitter was also used to appeal to citizen journalists. Abeer MK retweets CNN's plea for photographs:
Meanwhile, Imra Solt posted pictures of the fireworks show during the opening here.
Off to enjoy the rest of the opening show!
(Burj Dubai picture by Joi Ito under http://www.flickr.com/photos/joi/ / CC BY 2.0“>Creative Commons)

author: Amira Al Hussaini


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UAE: How Safe is Your Food? · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

How safe is your food? Dubai-based blogger Alexander McNabb shares his food knowledge on Fake Plastic Souks.


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Venezuela: BlogaCine Attracts Fellow Film Fans · Global Voices
Laura Vidal

BlogaCine [es] is exactly what its name says: a blog devoted to cinema. Since its beginnings in 2004, its author, Venezuelan Carlos Caridad-Montero discovered a cyber-space in which he could write about movies in general, and Venezuelan films in particular. Thus, Blogacine is the diary of both a movie expert observing experts, and an audience taking part in the critique. Readers have been participating very actively in this blog; and more interestingly, there is a renewed interest for national films, as seen in the comments, which is something that has been acknowledged more than once by the Venezuelan press [es].
The writings have generated a lot of discussion by readers who have high expectations about the quality of films in Venezuela. For example, one topic that continues to attract a lot of attention involves the themes of many Venezuelan traditional films, which, according to some readers, have focused too much on urban violence [es]. Instead, the bloggers and commenters contend that there are many other simple, yet stunning stories that have yet to be told onscreen.
Screenshot of BlogaCine
In his post on the 5 years of the blog Caridad-Montero writes about how he started with this project:
Todo comenzó a gestarse a mediados de 2004, cuando tropecé en Internet con las palabras “escándalo sexual” y “weblog” en una misma frase. En mayo de ese año, se supo que una pasante llamada Jessica Cutler, empleada en la oficina de un senador estadounidense, había estado publicando el diario de sus correrías sexuales en Capitol Hill, en algo llamado weblog. Al buscar el significado de la enigmática palabra, fui a parar a Blogger, un servicio que permitía la publicación online de una página web cuyos artículos podían ser organizados cronológicamente. Sí, a la manera de diario o bitácora.
En un principio monté una bitácora personal llamada Cuaderno de Notas (de un cineasta latinoamericano). Pero enseguida me di cuenta de que aquella era la oportunidad de hacer algo que siempre quise y nunca pude por escasos conocimientos técnicos: montar un site dedicado al cine y a los temas cinematográficos que a mí me atraían. Al mismo tiempo, una página que sirviera para hacer circular la información en el, entonces claustrofóbico, mundo cinematográfico venezolano.
It all started in mid-2004, when I ran into a phrase online containing the words “sexual scandal” and “weblog” together in the same phrase. In May that year, it was discovered that an intern named Jessica Cutler, who was working in a Senator’s office was writing about her sexual adventures inside Capitol Hill in something called a “weblog”.  When I looked for the word, I ended up on the site Blogger, a service that allowed online publishing of a series of articles that could be organized chronologically. The same way we do it in a diary.
I began with a blog called “Note Pad (of a Latin-American moviemaker).” However, I found out that I had the opportunity to create something I always wanted to do, and never could because of my lack of technical knowledge. I wanted to make a site devoted to cinema and explore this theme through the elements that interested me the most. At the same time, I wanted to make a page that could spread information about the Venezuelan movie world, which at that time, was claustrophobic.
Blogacine uses social media on its site, such as Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook, among others, which makes the movement of information fast and accessible. Readers note that the blog is written with great care and passion about the subject matter, which only motivates the public to join the discussion. To illustrate this, Caridad-Montero comments:
He publicado alrededor de 2 mil artículos y he tratado en todo momento de mantener la idea inicial. BlogaCine no es una revista, sino un blog y, como tal, tiene un acento en lo personal. No sólo en la persona de su autor, sino en la de los cineastas y aficionados al cine que la visitan.
Me da la impresión de que la fórmula ha dado resultado. Las visitas a la página no han dejado de crecer y los usuarios tampoco.
I have published around 2000 articles and I have tried, at all times, to keep the idea I had at the beginning. BlogaCine is not a magazine, rather, it is a blog, and as such it underlines the personal element; not only of the author, but also of the moviemakers, and the fans that visit the page.
I have the impression that the formula has had results. The visits keep growing, so are the users.
And the results, according to Caridad-Montero:
Con el advenimiento del fenómenos de las redes sociales y los usuarios activos (Facebook, Twitter y YouTube), la información ya no puede ser contenida o censurada. (…) Las redes han borrado la línea divisoria entre emisores y receptores, (…) entre lo personal y lo objetivo. Para cualquier blog, el nuevo panorama presenta retos insospechados.
(En cuanto  a la dinámica de BlogaCine): No sólo se ha elevado el nivel de nuestras discusiones, sin que vaya en detrimento de la pasión. Está visto que para discutir, no hace falta andar en plan troglodita, insultándonos los unos a los otros con los epítetos usuales: ¡escuálido! ¡Chavista! ¡Oligarca! ¡Comunista! ¡Etc.!
Tal parece que alcanzamos un punto en el que BlogaCine podrá ser el fruto no sólo del trabajo de su autor, sino también del de sus comentaristas.
With the advent of the phenomena of social networks and active users (Facebook, Twitter and YouTube), information can no longer be contained or censored (…) These networks have erased the line dividing transmitters and users (…) what is objective and what is personal. For any blog, this new panaroma presents unsuspected challenges.
(Regarding the dynamics of BlogaCine): Not only have we elevated the level of our discussions without putting aside the passion. We see here that, to discuss, it is unnecessary to have a loud attitude or insult each other with the usual epithets: “Escuálido!” (Commonly used for anti-Chavez people), “Chavist!” “Bourgeois!” “Communist!” etc…
It seems that we have reached a point in which BlogaCine could be the result not only of its author’s work, but also that of the people who comment.

author: Laura Vidal


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Video: In Spain, Camera Free Video Workshop for Kids · Global Voices
Juliana Rincón Parra

In Valladolid, Spain, Film-making is taught to children without them having to use a camera. Following are some of the videos showcasing the process and final results of these workshops.
marker on film
The Asociación Espacio Rojo (Red Space Asociation) is the one organizing the workshops, and this is how they introduce their vision:
Actualmente, Estamos realizando el Taller ‘Mi primera película’ que es un taller práctico de cine sin cámara. Este taller presenta la forma de hacer cine, películas sin cámaras usando técnicas y soporte cinematográfico como medio de expresión.
Following is a video with the children's first movies:
In the latest workshop, which took place on December 27th, the kids painted on 16 mm film: then all their strips, were spliced together. In this video you can see them at work, and admiring the machines used to splice their film:
In this next video, in addition to the process, you can see the children admiring their first film at the screening:
You can view more of the videos featuring the children's experimentation with film-making as well as the workshops in process on the Red Space Asociation vimeo channel.

author: Juliana Rincón Parra


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Australia: Indian Homicide Reignites Racism Ruckus · Global Voices
Kevin Rennie

The murder of an Indian man in Melbourne has reignited the debate about racism in Australia and the safety of overseas students. It has also severely strained relations between Australia and India:
INDIAN diplomats are expected to meet their Australian counterparts for crisis talks in Canberra today following the murder of an Indian migrant in Melbourne.
The murder of 21-year-old accounting graduate Nitin Garg in a Yarraville park on Saturday night was yesterday condemned by politicians in India and Australia.
Diplomatic crisis erupts after Indian student's murder
Australian bloggers’ responses show a very diverse range of views.
Gerard Henderson, Executive director of The Sydney Institute, speculates on the geopolitical undertones in an opinion piece for the Sydney Morning Herald :
The tragedy happened to coincide with a distinct cooling in the relationship between the two nations over the past couple of years. During a visit to India in late 2008 I was surprised to hear strong criticism of Kevin Rudd at the highest levels of the New Delhi administration. India's prime gripe turned on the refusal of the Rudd Government's to sell uranium to India, which overturned the intention of John Howard and his senior ministers.
Student assaults teach some harsh lessons about racism
Loon Pond, aka Dorothy Parker, takes Henderson to task:
Is it just me, or is it just grubbiness of an arcane kind to link the assault and murder of Indians in Australia to Australia's current policies in relation to the sale of uranium to India?
That's the convoluted tap dance performed by Gerard Henderson in Student assaults teach some harsh lessons about racism.
Gerard Henderson, India, uranium, street crime, and a particularly grubby column
Peter Maher blogs for Melbourne radio station 3AW. He is concerned that there is a culture of denial, whether or not the killing was racially motivated:
How anyone can say it is not race related when they do not know the circumstances of the murder as I said earlier is difficult to comprehend.
What I do know though is that this abusive, violent, murderous behaviour towards Indians in this country is far too prevalent to suggest that we do not have a problem with racism in this country.
… We are so quick to brush these racist tendencies under the carpet and provide the world with this image of us as being non-discriminatory and all-inviting.
I think it is time we took a real good look at ourselves and do something about the racism that exists in this country.
Wake up Australia! We are racist
Dave, blogging as True Blue Aussie, has little doubt about the nature of any racism:
Of course everyone in Melbourne is aware, that Footscray, which used to be an Australian suburb, is now full of Islamic Sudanese, Middle Eastern Arabs and Somalians. There is hardly an Australian to be seen in Footscray. So, welcome to the divisive multicultural, ethnically diverse, immigration hell hole where immigrants (in this case likely be be muslims) attack other immigrants and Australians are blamed. Dave
Racist immigrants will be blamed for the fatal stabbing of an Indian man
A Facebook group, 1,000,000 True Aussies Against Racism, has a very different view of what it means to be an “Australian”. Their aim is to:
Stop the vocal minority who are using Facebook and talk back radio to make this wonderful country look like REDNECK nirvana.
Andrew Bartlett, former Democrats Senator and current Greens candidate for the next Federal election, wants more action from both State and Federal leaders. Writing for Asian Correspondent he argues:
While every crime should be treated on its merits, and we should not automatically assume this latest crime was racially motivated, the history of past attacks, and arguably the slowness of Australian authorities to take the issue sufficiently seriously, means that just a single serious incident such as this has the Hindustan Times  reporting that, “Indian government officials ‘will be forced’ to issue a (travel) advisory in the form of a warning to those who want to work and study Down Under, if the (Australian) authorities there did not take stern action this time.”
It is the responsibility of government and community leaders to take effective steps to assure people that (a) the issue is being treated with maximum seriousness, and (b) everything reasonable is done to ensure peoples’ safety. When there is a plausible prospect that people are being targeted because of their race, it is essential that all is done to reduce the risks to them.
Tragic murder puts spotlight back on safety of Indians in Australia
Meanwhile the safety of athletes and visitors at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October is an ongoing issue that could erupt at any time. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has a High Degree of Caution as its current travel advice for India. Tit for tat coming up perhaps?
UPDATE 6 January 2010
The Times of India reports that an advisory warning has been the result:
Succumbing to popular outrage over continuing attacks on Indian students in Australia, the government on Tuesday issued an advisory warning students heading to Australia for studies and those already there.
The foreign ministry cautioned students that incidents of violence had started affecting the larger Indian community in Australia. The advisory came three days after accounting graduate Nitin Garg was knifed to death, the first fatality in the attacks. It also came on a day when Indian and Australian officials met in Canberra to search for better ways to deal with the continuing violence even as the partially burnt body of another Indian was found.
Advisory asks students to be careful in Australia

author: Kevin Rennie


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Azerbaijan: Winter blues · Global Voices
Onnik Krikorian

Linda in Azerbaijan details the downside of being a Peace Corps Volunteer in the South Caucasus. Based in Azerbaijan, she says that winters can be particularly depressing and fitting in with the local culture sometimes frustrating.

author: Onnik Krikorian


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Bangladesh: Becoming A Service Oriented Nation · Global Voices
Rezwan

“Bangladesh, is becoming more of a service oriented nation and a customer service culture is developing more than ever before,” comments Zain Mahmood, a non-resident Bangladeshi and the CEO of a US-based multinational company, after visiting Bangladesh recently.


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Bolivia: The Life of a Taxi Driver in El Alto · Global Voices
Eduardo Avila

Blogger Wilfredo Jordán from El Alto, Bolivia takes a closer look at the life of a taxi driver, who drives the streets of his hometown on a daily basis. In addition to the long working hours for little pay, they often must face dangerous situations from passengers that have sinister motives. The following is an extended excerpt from a recent posting at his blog Vivir en Bolivia [es] (Live in Bolivia):
La vida no tiene precio, y un taxista que ha trabajado en las calles de El Alto lo sabe muy bien. Varios de ellos, además de lidiar con fallas habituales de sus vehículos, ya que muchos son adquiridos de “segunda mano”, o la imprudencia de algunos choferes, deben enfrentarse con la delincuencia, a tal grado de que cualquiera puede perder la vida o estar cerca de ello.
Jordán highlights some of the cases of taxi drivers facing these real life dangers, as had happened with Germán Quispe, who was strangled by a rope from behind, but was saved when a friend happened to pass by. Another driver faced a similar situation in March 2009:
Como Quispe, cientos son los taxistas que afrontan estos riesgos, el 22 de marzo de este año, Moisés Chambi Blanco, de 24 años, recogió a unos pasajeros de la Ceja con destino a la zona Juana Azurduy de Padilla, en el sector de Río Seco. Cuando pasó por el camino a Laja, cuya carretera es poco iluminada, uno de ellos sacó un arma y le disparó en el rostro.
Los delincuentes, creyendo que había muerto, tiraron el cuerpo a un costado de la vía; pero más tarde Chambi recuperó el conocimiento y fue internado de emergencia en el Hospital Sagrado Corazón, en la zona de El Kenko.
Just like Quispe, hundreds of taxi drivers face these risks, on March 22, 2009, Moisés Chambi Blanco, 24, picked up some passengers at La Ceja (the transit area between El Alto and La Paz) with a destination of the neighborhood of Juana Azurduy de Padilla in the area of Río Seco. When he passed along the road to Laja, whose highway is dimly lit, one of the passengers took out a gun and shot him in the face.
The criminals, thinking that he had died, tossed his body on the side of the road; however, later Chambi regained consciousness and was admitted to the emergency room at the Sacred Heart Hospital in the area of El Kenko.
Despite these risks, Jordán profiles the individuals that decide to become taxi drivers in El Alto.
La mayoría de los taxistas se dedican a este oficio por la falta de trabajo, y lo hacen sin ganar mucho, incluso, sin un vehículo propio. Así, una jornada de trabajo, que oscila entre las 06.00 y 20.00, salda de 80 a 150 bolivianos, de los cuales 50 le corresponden al propietario del motorizado, 30 se va a la gasolina y el resto es la ganancia del conductor.
Jordán spoke to one of these drivers for a first-hand account:
René Machicado, quien pertenece al Sindicato Arco Iris, representa uno de esos casos. Con una experiencia de 19 años tras el volante y luego de haber trabajado en el desaparecido Servicio Nacional de Caminos, decidió laborar por su cuenta.
“Actualmente las empresas sólo reciben personal para poco tiempo y no permanentes como antes. Ahora todo es con contratos determinados y no conviene porque no es un trabajo seguro”, indica y añade que éste, además de ser un oficio peligroso, es sacrificado, pues se deben soportar largas jornadas, incluso turnos nocturnos, que es cuando más peligro existe.
René Machicado, who belongs to the syndicate Arco Iris, talks about these cases. With 19 years of experience behind the wheel, and after working for the now-defunct National Road Service, he decided to work on his own.
“Now, companies only hire personnel for short periods of time and not permanently like before. Now everything is with short-term contracts and it is not worth it because it is not a steady job,” he says, and adds that driving a taxi, in addition to being a dangerous job, requires sacrifice because one must withstand long hours, even night shifts, and that is when it is more dangerous.
The danger is demonstrated that between in 8 months in 2008, statistics indicate that there were 10 cases of vehicle theft which resulted in the murder of the driver.

author: Eduardo Avila


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China: Early cyberdissident joins Twitter · Global Voices
John Kennedy

Following his release last spring from eight years in prison for online publishing, founding member of the New Youth Society Yang Zili (@ziliyang) has today joined Twitter.

author: John Kennedy