Global Voices Online

Pierrot Dupuy writes (Fr) about the crisis in the local University: “The State, politicians, economic and social actors cannot let the status quo prevail. Things are falling apart at the University: each file is affected, each meeting turns into a power struggle, each decision is subject to calculations that have nothing to do with the public interest.”

Mad de Madagascar delves (Fr) into the history that brought samoosas (however spelt and prounouced in the region) to the Indian Ocean (Reunion, Madagascar, Mauritius) from India. The blogger then offers a video of a French chef's recipe and adds that in Reunion, cousins have emerged made with cheese or pineapple.

According to UDPS Liege, (Fr) Zacharie Babaswabe, a spokesperson for President Kabila, recently said on national television that: “If [diaspora Congolese] continue to threaten us in Europe, we are going to attack their families [who live in the Congo].” The blog concludes: “The killings at the hands of the UPI and the GSSP that we became used to during the transition period are now becoming institutionalized.”

The Trinidad and Tobago government has plans for a $15 billion rapid rail project intended to ease the nation's traffic congestion, but as guest writer Driselle Ramjohn writes at ttgapers.com, industry experts as well as the local arm of Transparency International are calling for the procurement process to be put on hold until research and feasibility studies are carried out.

Ninad Gujar is looking forward to the “47 days of World Class Cricket” that the 2007 Cricket World Cup (being held in the Caribbean) will provide. He outlines the format of the tournament and posts photos and statistics of previous winners.

Francomenz reports on a strike by workers of Trinidad and Tobago's major petroleum supply company.

Bermuda is expecting a meteor shower tonight - well worth seeing, according to this post at IMHO.bm.

KZBlog looks at several environmental issues in Central Asia, ranging from the decline of the Aral Sea to gas burning in the oil-rich Caspian region.

Peter reports, along with pictures, that Turkmen President Niyazov has officially inaugurated a theme park named after himself.

Onnik Krikorian has the latest updates on the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections, including the news that a popular war hero got arrested for allegedly plotting a coup d'état.

Sean Roberts posts the transcript of his recent speech on clan politics in Central Asia, and James adds his two cents.

Ukraine List posts “four perspectives on World War II (The Great Patriotic War) from Ukraine. One is from a French priest, another is from a film director, yet another is from a cave explorer, and the last is of an amateur archaeologist.”

LEvko of Foreign Notes believes that Ukraine's president Victor Yushchenko “is strengthening a team around himself in anticipation of early [parliamentary] re-elections next year.”

Everybody I Love You reports on how difficult - or even impossible - it is for his Russian wife to get a Blue Shield of California medical insurance - because they require copies of her “medical records”: “And what, Dear Sir, Mr. Senior Underwriter, constitutes medical records? Can't say, can I? Isn't defined. Would it be every form filled out by every doctor she's ever seen? Would you like that translated and in triplicate? Where would you like me to leave the file cabinet?”

Both The Registan and neweurasia report on a new landmark to be built in Kazakhstan's capital Astana - a 150 meter high transparent tent designed by star architect Norman Foster.

Further Ramblings of a N.Irish Magyar writes about Hungary's Chinese community.

The beatroot writes what the martial law in Poland felt - and tasted - like: “Martial Law, Poland, December 13, 1981 […] tasted like plastic. There is an evocative free gift with this week’s edition of Newsweek Polska. It’s a little box of chocolates. Inside the period looking box are two chocolates: one is made of real chocolate; the other is made of the ersatz chocolate (czekoladopodobny) that was all most Poles could get hold of during Martial Law, a period of rationing of food stuffs.”

The controversial Polish Catholic radio station - Radio Maryja - is 15 years old, reports the beatroot.

ZheZhe [dot] us - a blog run by people who position themselves as “neither Russophiles or Russophobes, but Russorealists” - has a lengthy review of the Russian blogosphere. It also welcomes translations and original English-language posts by Russian bloggers (see comments to this post at Siberian Light).

A translation of an article by Aleksandr Osovtsev on the reputation of Vladimir Putin and other Russian “leaders” - over at La Russophobe.

The war in Chechnya began on Dec. 11, 1994. David McDuff of A Step At A Time translates a Prague Watchdog anniversary article.

Vutha talks to Karaoke girl in Cambodia and describes her life.

FUNCK CHEN applies the concept of web 2.0 to travel: a travel service that helps the tourists to define their own travel content and environment, etc. (zh)

The protest for preserving Star Ferry has been on going for two days. Protesters had occupied the ferry for stopping the demolition until the police cleared the scene today (Dec 13) afternoon. Inmediahk.net has the most detailed citizen report since last night: including 1. whole town chasing after Michael Sun (the government official) (zh); 2. a longest protesting day (zh); 3. police brutal clearing of the scene (zh).

Mo's notebook questions whether Donald Tsang's decision to demolish the Star ferry is in consistence with his claim that he is a genuine local Hong Konger (zh).

Seecheun hopes that the protest will be successful and become a milestone for the success of local civil society (zh) .

Wang Xiao feng criticises that the Cultural Bureau does not promote culture in China because it defines everything new as “unhealthy” (zh).

Beijing city government recently invited Chinese and foreign journalists to visit the dog impounding facilities which is set up for all the unlicensed dogs they've caught in their recent campaign. Peijin in Shanghaiist puts together some reports.

Increasingly infamous for his characterizations of national character, Rob Rivera now presents us with his thoughts on Panamanians and Mother’s Day and Panamanians and Transportation.

According to Mark in Mexico, Oaxacan protest leader Flavio Sosa was formally indicted on a number of charges. “From Oaxaca to Michoacan,” writes Ana Maria Salazar, “the federal government has initiated ‘Operación Michoacán' in order to combat organized crime in the drug-plagued state.”

Mexican blogger and Brazilian resident Ricardo Carreón found himself in Chile on the historical day of Pinochet's death and offers some thoughts and photos on its significance.

Patrick of the Guatemalan Solidarity Network posts a video interview with Jennifer Harbury whose husband, Efrain Bámaca, disappeared in Guatemala in 1992.

Tim Muth remembers the 25th anniversary of El Mozote massacre, “one of the worst atrocities of the civil war and was committed by U.S. trained troops of the Salvadoran armed forces.”

“La Gringa” documents the preparations for Christmas in La Ceiba, Honduras: “Christmas traditions in La Ceiba aren't so different from those in the U.S., depending, of course, on the income level of the family. The traditions here in La Ceiba may have been influenced by the long-time presence of the Standard Fruit Company (Dole Co.), at one time the largest employer in the area.”

Some satirical Christmas cheer as Jeremy Taylor quotes Tom Lehrer.

“…Like many other Chileans forced out of our country, today I regret only one thing: that we never saw you in front of a judge.” Vivianne Schnitzer's words on the death of Chilean ex-dictator Augusto Pinochet so touched Geoffrey Philp that he posted a poem, Elegy for a Fallen General.

“The Guyana Providence Stadium outfield is dead as a door nail,” reports Robin Banks, as preparations for the ICC 2007 Cricket World Cup “are coming down to the wire”. Posted with a photo gallery of the stadium site and cricket pitch.

GuyanaGyal has an encounter with a “loonie on the seawall”…

Csikszereda Musings writes on Romanianisation, de-Magyarisation, the Romanian Orthodox Church, and more.

Barbados Free Press refers to an article from the Trinidad Express that calls for corporate governance to be made more transparent by law.

Arubagirl was all geared up for a national strike against a 3% sales tax that the government is planning to introduce, but it all came to nought.