2 December 2006

Stories from 2 December 2006

Afghan Whispers:Marshall Plan,Drought and Herat

  2 December 2006

What Happened to Marshall Plan? Sanjar explains why a Marshall Plan for his country did not achieve its objectives. The blogger writes After the establishment of President Karzai’s government in Afghanistan there was talk of the need for implementation of a plan much like the Marshall Plan for post Second...

Barbados: Blog censorship

  2 December 2006

Barbados Free Press is highly critical of the Barbados Labour Party's wholehearted endorsement of Deputy Prime Minister Mia Mottley's call for the censoring of blogs and radio call-in programmes.

Africa:World Aids Day frustrations

  2 December 2006

Brian writes about his World Aids Day frustrations in Bots Blog, “Speeches, marches, buying a red Ipod (or 100,000 of them), etc. won't make a bit of difference in the struggle against HIV on this continent.”

Africa: if I were not African

  2 December 2006

In a post titled, [They] don’t say “Malawi”; they just say “Africa.”, Sotho writes, “If I were not African, I wonder whether it would be clear to me that Africa is a place where the people do not need limp gifts of fish but sturdy fishing rods and fair access...

Bahamas: Tribute to Bahamian intellectual

  2 December 2006

Nicolette Bethel republishes a tribute to the late Bahamian intellectual, Winston V. Saunders, by Rex Nettleford, Vice Chancellor Emeritus of the University of the West Indies and founder of the Jamaica National Dance Theatre.

Cote d'Ivoire: Tensions between President and Prime Minister

  2 December 2006

Le Blog d'Olivier Gabirault points to a Jeune Afrique L'Intelligent article stating (Fr): “A consultant to Prime Minister Charles Konan Banny denounced the shortcomings of President Laurent Gbagbo in a recent toxic waste scandal, confirming tensions between the two men two days from an international summit on the Ivoirian peace...

The Laptop “To Conquer Them All” Arrives in Brazil

  2 December 2006

The “$100 laptop” has arrived in Brazil and so has a significant discussion in the blogosphere. Last week, in a much-hyped ceremony at the Palacio do Planalto in Brasilia, MIT's Media Lab co-founder Nicholas Negroponte met President Lula to launch the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative in Brazil. The...

Nigeria: blogger wins ICT award

  2 December 2006

Edward Popoola, who won the award for Top ICT Educator in Africa recently, writes, “Remarkable in that, I got an award I least expected I was going to win. My application was strong, at least I considered it strong enough, but I did not know who the other nominees were.”

Bleeding at the Iraqi Blogodrome

  2 December 2006

I sit here and try to imagine how I would feel if it had been my country which had been invaded, bombarded into submission, occupied, allowed to be looted and vandalized, my people brutalised, towns I lived in ripped apart, my countrys infrastructure destroyed, people I loved killed and those...

Africa: speakers at TEDGlobal

  2 December 2006

A leading Kenyan blogger, Kenyan Pundit, is one of the speakers at an international conference taking place in Arusha, Tanzania next year. The list includes inventors, business-leaders, entrepreneurs, scientists, designers, artists, writers, and activists who are contributing to Africa's development.

Africa: One Million African Lives Initiative

  2 December 2006

“Charity begins at home,” writes Grandiose Parlor, describing Emeka Okafor’s One Million African Lives Initiative, “The initiative is a collaboration between him and the Safe Blood for Africa Foundation, a leading international non-profit organization working with 34 sub-Saharan African countries.”

India: Racially immune to AIDS?

  2 December 2006

Sepia Mutiny on the status of HIV/ AIDS in India – including recent positive news in securing treatment. However, the issue of awareness remains a problem. “Meanwhile, a study of 252 Indian truckers finds that over 40 percent have passed an STD to their wives, and that many believe that...

India: Violence of the poor

  2 December 2006

The desecration of a statue causes unrest and violence. a reader's words writes “Once again, it is the rage against the Dalit rage that makes me side with those who are at the receiving end of society. There are dozens of blog posts expressing anger against the riots, very few...

Pakistan: Girls, you should know the first kalma

  2 December 2006

All Things Pakistan looks at some lines of poetry written on the back of a bus with initial amusement and then with a slight sense of horror. The post and the comments discuss expectations from Pakistani women. “Roughly translated, it says: Girls these days are so proud of their beauty....

India, Pakistan: Chennai and Lahore's gifts to the world

  2 December 2006

Metroblogs the world over are focusing on the gifts each city has given to the world. Metroblogging Lahore has a wonderful post focusing on the cuisine and delights for the foodies and Metroblogging Chennai has a series of delightful posts – including this one on Chennai's gift of Indo Saracenic...

Pakistan: AIDS/ HIV and awareness

  2 December 2006

On World AIDS Day, Metroblogging Islamabad on why Pakistan needs to be careful about HIV and get its awareness programs going. “A third of Pakistani truck drivers recently surveyed had never heard of condoms and 19 out of 20 who bought sex from women did not use condoms, according to...

Bangladesh: Children and their resilience

  2 December 2006

morris the pen on a ten year old child who was rescued from a life of abuse. “Let’s not forget: we are talking here about a very young child, whose life experience already includes beating, torture and the threat of murder.

Bangladesh: Messages on Video

  2 December 2006

Salam Dhaka in a very brief post points to the growing number of videos on video sharing sites relating to Bangladesh. “On-line video is becoming a political tool for the growing web savy youths of Bangladesh. Political parties, social organizations, musicians are using it to spread their messages.”

Venezuelan 3D

  2 December 2006

The 3D (December 3) will become a new milestone in Venezuela's political calendar. This Sunday Venezuelans will choose our next President. Although more than ten candidates are registered, the election race is truly among only two candidates: the social democrat Manuel Rosales and incumbent President Hugo Chávez, who aspires to...