Stories from 17 January 2008
Russia: Flag Unification for Hajj?
Window on Eurasia reports that the Russian Federation's Muslims make hajj “under the flags of their national republics or even nations.” This may change next year, though.
Russia: “Not Free”
Sean's Russia Blog writes about the Freedom House's recent verdict on Russia: “not free.”
Russia: News Update
Mark MacKinnon posts for the first time this year: an update on the news from Russia and elsewhere.
Russia: Ivan the Terrible
Axis of Evel Knievel writes about Ivan the Terrible.
Russia, UK: View From BC's Former Employee
Interesting insight into the British Council scandal from Dmitri Minaev of De Rebus Antiquis Et Novis – in this post's comments section at Siberian Light: “These attacks never really stopped, but the British embassy managed to keep the offices running till in 2007 Russia finally demanded that some offices be...
Russia, U.K.: More on the British Council
Ongoing coverage of the British Council row – at A Step At A Time: “An interesting feature of the present crisis, which was obviously prepared in advance by the Russian authorities, is the flooding of British media comments boards (the Mail and Telegraph are the two leading examples at present)...
Poland: “Invisible” Government
“‘The government can do nothing’, should be the slogan for this new government,” writes the beatroot.
The Baltics: Missing the Borders
Latvian Abroad notes that the lack of borders in the Schengen Zone can be quite a nuisance: “A woman from rural Lithuania tries to catch a ride to Kaunas, the second largest city in Lithuania. A miscommunication with the driver leads to … her being dropped off in Tartu, Estonia!”
Bahrain: Frustration and Change
Frustration is a good catalyst for change, notes Bahraini Mahmood Al Yousif, who takes a closer look at his country's internal politics.
Iran:A student died under torture
Kargareemrouz informs[Fa] that Ibrahim Lotfolahi, a university student,was killed under torture in prison in Kurdistan province,in Iran. He had been arrested about ten days ago.
Iran:Arab leaders follow Saddam Hussein's destiny
Fateh says[Fa] all Arab leaders in Persian Gulf follow Saddam Hussein’s destiny. The blogger says their difference with Saddam is that,thanks to their hypocrisy,they are at the same time a friend of USA and Iran.
Iran:A man who sacrificed his life to protect wild nature
Kosoof, a leading photo blogger, has published several photos of Dr.Hormoz Assadi,a pro environment activist and academic,who died in a car accident recently. The blogger adds that Dr.Assadi was transporting yellow deers to a safe natural place, when accident happened.
Iran:Hijab is not an obstacle for Women
Kourosh Ziabari says that Hijab (veil) is not an obstacle for women to become active in social life or make sport. He has published a few photos to support his idea.
Angola: A social contrast
Orlando Castro [pt] criticizes the contrast implicit in the construction of a 70 floor tower in Luanda, which will be the largest building in Angola and home of luxury houses, hotels, offices and shops. “So this is the way that part of my country's history is written. The other is...
Macau: Polution, fog and cold
“If “smog” is portmanteau formed from “smoke” and “fog”, “frog” is the anti-portmanteau I have come up with for “frio” [Portuguese for cold] and “smog”. Leocardo [pt] comments on the coldest day in Macau for many months and on the pollution that China has been trying unsuccessfully to eradicate.
India: Rewriting History
Synchori-Cities narrates an incident that leads the author to reflect on the re-writing of history.
India: A representative for the NRIs
Law and Other Things suggests that Non-Resident Indians should get their own representative in the Indian parliament.
Pakistan: Blast in Peshawar
Metroblogging Lahore on a suicide bomb blast in Peshawar, creating even more tension in the country.
Nepal: Federalism, Justice, & Law Enforcement
Bahas on the current structure of the legal system in Nepal. “The justice and law enforcement in democracy can hardly be transparent nor can they serve justice to the people if their implementations depend on central control.”
Bolivia: Blogger Named to National Electoral Court
The Bolivian blog community is generally very supportive of its members. Recently, a well-known blogger was named to a high ranking position within the Bolivian government. Normally, a pat on the back and other displays of congratulations would have accompanied this new appointment. However, when the blogger in question was named to head up the National Electoral Court (CNE for its initials in Spanish), many bloggers began to question how appropriate was this new member of the CNE.
Jordan: Trusting Arab Online Services
Qwaider from Jordan tells us why he can't trust Arab on-line services in this post.
