Stories from 18 August 2006
Transparency is Promoted and Debated in the Brazilian Election Process
The call for transparency is ringing in the Lusosphere these days. Brazilian presidential and general elections are six weeks from now and, after the innumerable corruption scandals involving congressmen and executive officials, the push for truth has become a vigorous movement on the Internet. The issue was on top of...
Uzbekistan: 15 Years On
Nick gives an outsider's view of Uzbekistan, 15 years after becoming an independent state.
Armenia: Mugged
Nessuna was attacked and had her purse stolen. She gives a brief account of the experience at her blog.
Kyrgyzstan: Dining on the Silk Road
Aigul of Go Kyrgyz! writes about Kyrgyz cuisine.
DRC: Louis Michel's Performance as a Mediator
According to Ndjoli Bodjenga at Le Blog du Congolais (Fr) European Commissary Louis Michel has performed poorly as a mediator during the transition to elections in the DRC: “An impartial political mediator would not overtly confront one of the principal actors of the conflict to be solved; he would not...
DRC: A Wasted Election?
At Le Blog du Congolais, Ndjoli Bodjenga assesses the recent election as follows (Fr): “The posh crowd from the international community (Miche, Okala, Barosso, Swing, etc.) is happy to have organized co-called elections and to have prioritized the participation of the 3 local warlords. (…) Elections that could have made...
Latin America: Friday Poll Numbers
Support of Peru's Alan Garcia, mounting indecision in Ecuador, expansion support for the Panama Canal, and fraud in Mexico City. Yup, it's Boz's Friday Poll Numbers.
El Salvador: Solving the Gang Problem
Insprired by the death of two young boys by a neighboring gang, Tim Muth has an unforgettable four piece series on El Salvador and Central America's gang problem. Print it out, come back to it throughout the weekend, but don't let it pass you by. (Parts 1, 2, 3, and...
Cuba: Sweet 15
Robin Thom had the good fortune to be on the right balcony at the right time in order to capture this lovely scene on the Paseo de Prado in Havana, Cuba. “I had always assumed this was a wedding,” writes Robin on his Flickr page, “but it was pointed out...
Mexico, Somalia: “A Forgotten Country”
Mexican blogger Enigmatario (ES) has a thorough post on the latest developments in Somalia in a post titled “A country forgotten by the world, Somalia, Islamist rebels, and Africa's Islamic future.”
Peru: Ollanta Humala formally charged in ‘Madre Mia’ case
Living in Peru writes that Ollanta Humala has been formally charged in the forced disappearance and homicide of spouses Avila Rivera and Benigno Sullca Castro on June 17, 1992 in Pucayacu, ten minutes away from Madre Mia. Maxwell A. Cameron has posted the entre article in Spanish.
Lebanon: Before and After the Cease Fire
Cease fire in the Israeli-Lebanese war officially began on Monday 14th August. Enteries in the Lebanese blogosphere were diverse starting from what went on during the last days of the war to predictions and analysis about the political consequences of the war on Lebanon. Some bloggers wrote about the effect of this conflict on their personal lives and attitudes. Others wrote about the reaction of their Jewish friends during the war. There are also some war jokes, anecdotes and war dialogues. Blogging and the reading of blogs turned out to be a source of solace and therapy for at least one blogger.
Iran: Crackdown on satellite dishes
Nikahang has published a photo from ISNA (Iranian Student News Agency) showing Iranian government crackdown on satellite dishes.
Iran: Jahanbegloo & Confession
Agh Bahman says it seems Ramin Jahanbegloo's, jailed philosopher; confession film will be broadcasted on TV. The blogger says he wants to see Iranian people reaction to this confession film. Will they believe that or not or just a part of that? The blogger adds Iranian people are not really...
Ukraine: Small-Town Justice
Petro of Petro's Jotter retells a true story of the complex ways in which justice is made in small-town Ukraine.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Sutjeska National Park
Novala, Europa felt like jumping and running through the fields in the beautiful Bosnia & Herzegovia, but was afraid of landmines; he did find a safe place eventually: Sutjeska National Park.
Ukraine: Tuk Tuk in Crimea
Jo and Ants The Tukkers of Tuk to the Road have reached Crimea now, where one of their encounters was with a Crimean Tatar man who told them about the 1944 deportations.
Estonia: “Democracy in Action”
In preparation for Estonia's presidential election, Giustino of Itching for Eestimaa decides to annoy municipal representatives of political parties and thus show “democracy in action“: “So for the next eleven days I will be putting up the contact information for different municpalities, starting with the capital of Tallinn.”
Ukraine: Trip to Kyiv
Moscow-based Digenis spends some time in Kyiv and compares it to Russia's capital, among other things.
Russia: Solzhenitsyn's Speech
Ivan Lenin of Rush-Mush critiques the speech Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's gave at Harvard in 1978.
Belarus: Iranian Investments
VW of TOL's Belarus Blog writes about Iran's significant investments in Belarus.
