27 September 2008

Stories from 27 September 2008

Malaysia: Molotov cocktail thrown at politician's house

  27 September 2008

A molotov cocktail was thrown at the house of Malaysian politician Teresa Kok. She condemned the act and attributed the “despicable act to certain media groups and blogs that have deliberately demonised and portrayed (her) as chauvinistic, anti Malay and anti Islam.” She adds: “They persisted in reporting similar fictitious...

East Timor leader at a U.N. meeting

  27 September 2008

President Jose Ramos-Horta of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste delivered a statement at the 63rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly. Horta mentioned the improving economy of his country.

Pakistani Bloggers on the McCain-Obama Debate

  27 September 2008

Pakistani bloggers found much to analyze in last night's televised debate between United States presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain. What the US approach to Pakistan should be was a core part of discussion, since Pakistan has come under greater scrutiny in recent times and is considered a hot-spot....

Brazil: Free download of books under CC license

  27 September 2008

The book Além das Redes de Colaboração (Beyond the Collaboration Networks, pt), a compilation of texts organized by professors Nelson Pretto and Sergio Amadeu, has been published by EDUFBA (Federal University of Bahia publisher) under a Creative Commons license and is now available for free download. “The book, which tackles...

Jamaica: Dirty Water

  27 September 2008

“Ever since the passing of tropical storm Gustav, my tap water has never been the same”: Jamaican blogger Stunner is having water woes.

Haiti: More than Charity

  27 September 2008

Haiti Reborn reports that the country's president is calling for “more than just ‘charitable’ contributions to Haiti's recovery.”

Cuba: Back to Normal?

  27 September 2008

Things appear to be getting back to normal in Cuba post-Hurricane Ike, but Generation Y questions the definition of “normalcy”: “I do not believe that a month ago we had anything resembling ‘normal.’ Furthermore, in the three decades that I have under my belt I do not think I have...

Jamaica: Child Missing

  27 September 2008

After an eleven year-old girl goes missing in Kingston, Abeng News Magazine examines the plight of Jamaica's children: “With no inclination to tackle the complexity of the issues involved and no plan in sight to deal squarely with the crime menace…the youth will remain at the top of the island's...

Guyana: Perception Rejection

  27 September 2008

Living Guyana says: “Not unexpectedly the PPP Government of Guyana has rejected Transparency International‘s grading of Guyana on their corruption index.”

Angola: Photo of an accident in the Cabinda airpot

  27 September 2008

SDBlog [pt] publishes a picture he took of an accident in the Cabinda airpot, in Angola, yesterday. “I later heard on the radio that there were no people injured and the material damage was not huge. I imagine the fright of the workers from the construction work in front of...

Sierra Leone: No money, no doctor

  27 September 2008

No money, no doctor, writes a Sierra Leone based blogger, Sandra: “Last week I saw a little boy who was moderately sick. He had lost weight, had many palpable lymph nodes and a chest infection. I decided to treat as outpatient with a strong antibiotic and see the child again...

Nigeria: Post-independece political scene

  27 September 2008

Omo Taylor analyses Nigeria's post-independence political scene: “Forty-eight years on, I muse, Nigeria is gripped tightly by what I would call demonised Democracy. A government of the people in most cases, by sneaky, snaky, money-corrupt, weak, scheming, power-corrupt, sugar tongued vipers; who have no inkling about ruling the people in...

Nigeria: Impressive Branding

  27 September 2008

Impressive branding in Nigeria, “Etisalat Nigeria witnessed an influx of visitors to its web site as Nigerians sought to reserve special numbers on Etisalat’s network. The website apparently had over 8 million hits in less than one week with thousands already reserving their special numbers on Etisalat’s network. It is...

Ethiopia: Food aid as a weapon of war

  27 September 2008

Can food aid be used as a weapon of war? Ethiopian blogger, Enset writes: “It looks like the Woyane rulers of Ethiopia have taken a calculated risk in using food aid as a weapon in the war against the Ogaden rebels.”

Bangladesh: Bangla blogs are keeping Rahela alive

  27 September 2008

On 19th August 2004, a nineteen year old garment factory worker in Savar, Dhaka Bangladesh was mugged, gang raped, viciously slashed and then left to die in the thickety Jahangir Nagar University campus. She was Rahela Lima Akhtar. There she lay amidst the thick foliage, undetected for three days. Her...

China: One Trillion US Bonds and Debt Scandal

  27 September 2008

According to a New York Times report in early September, the Chinese Central Bank has invested over USD $1 trillion on U.S. Treasury bills, bonds and debt securities. Among the one trillion dollar bill, $376.3 billion have been put into the mortgage backed securities of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,...