16 January 2009

Stories from 16 January 2009

Israel: Loving and Hating Yonit Levi

  16 January 2009

Yonit Levi is the beloved anchorwoman for Israel's Channel 2. Over the past few days, however, she has become a pariah in the blogosphere for her reactions to the current crisis in Gaza, deemed as sympathetic to Palestinians. Jillian York has the story.

Barbados, U.S.A.: Name Calling

  16 January 2009

“You going soon be inundated with children name D'Barack and Shabama and LaBama and such. Time to nip that in the bud”: Barbadian diaspora blogger Jdid wants Barack Obama to adjust his government's priorities.

Trinidad & Tobago: Tree Cutting, Belt Tightening

  16 January 2009

“The airport, which already looks like a sterile wasteland with all the grey paint and icky tiles, now bereft of the softening influence of vegetation. It looks like you've arrived in some place other than the Caribbean”: Coffeewallah thinks Trinidad is more like La La Land these days.

Cuba: Watching the Numbers

  16 January 2009

Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense links to statistics from”an unofficial Cuban human rights group”, which suggest that dissidents continue to be “jailed or prosecuted because of their political opposition to the regime.”

Trinidad & Tobago: The Inferno?

  16 January 2009

“Somedays I feel that the effort to constantly be watching over my shoulder and worrying about the safety of friends and loved ones in this small country of just over 1Million people will wear me out”: Trin compares T&T to Dante's Inferno.

Morocco: A Country Divided Over Gaza

  16 January 2009

As a quorum of Arab leaders convene in Doha today, the world is wondering how their meeting might bring about a cessation of hostilities in Gaza. Yesterday, the news broke that King Mohammed VI of Morocco would not be attending the Doha or any other summit. Blogger react to that, and to the division of public opinion within Morocco, in this piece from Jillian York.

Barbados: Collapse Caused by Negligence

  16 January 2009

About a year and a half after this apartment collapse, an earth and atmospheric sciences expert concludes that the tragedy was caused by “gross negligence”. Barbados Free Press is calling for a proper inquest.

Costa Rica: After the Earthquake

  16 January 2009

A week has passed since the 6.2 Earthquake in Costa Rica, and on blogger and twitter people have been commenting on the aftermath, analyzing the relief efforts, the rescue operations and the media's coverage of the events. Blogger and journalist Cristian Cambronero of Fusil de Chispas has been updating regularly...

Kazakhstan: Prime-Minister Launched Blog

  16 January 2009

On January 9 the Press Office of the Government informed that Karim Massimov, the Prime-Minister of Kazakhstan, started his private, yet official blog. Last December the Prime –Minister visited Russian capital, where he gave the interview to Echo of Moscow radio station. There he was asked a series of uneasy...

Hong Kong: Election Consultation Deferred… It's Dog-Speak!

  16 January 2009

If constructive questions like the election consultation became "dog-speak" in the eye of top ruling elites (in the form of Freudian slip), what's the function of the Legislative council? Although LSD's legislators' dog's fight performance is disruptive, can the Legislative council be genuinely constructive with the un-democratic system?

Kyrgyztsan: New Head of Administration or Next President?

  16 January 2009

On 13th January Daniyar Usenov was assigned as the head of the president’s administration. The previous chief of the president’s administration Medet Sadyrkulov left his post voluntarily. He said that “he has completed the task of the recovery of the state mechanism”. A lot of people called Medet Sadyrkulov a...