Stories from 26 October 2009
Azerbaijan: Hope
Writing on Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines on the eve of their next court hearing, Arzu Geybullayeva says she still hopes that detained video bloggers Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli will be released. She also says that the two online youth activists are an example to others and believes that...
Tunisia elections: Fairness and Impartiality !!?
Tunisian President Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali won a fifth term with 89.62 per cent of the over all votes. His party, the Democratic Constitutional Rally won 161 out of 214 parliament seats. Tunisian bloggers have their say in this post.
Syria: Hyperlink Podcast Caters to the Arabic Tech Crave
Hyperlink Podcast is received with enthusiasm among Syrian bloggers as one of the best technology podcasts available in Arabic. Created weekly by two Syrian blogging brothers, Mohammad and Beshr Kayyali, the podcast features a wide variety of technology topics and interviews with influential IT professionals. Syrian bloggers react to the site.
Israel: “Ordinary Racism” In Media Coverage
Approximately 20 per cent of the country's population, the Palestinian citizens of Israel (also known as Israeli Arabs) argue that they are discriminated against in many aspects of life. The media coverage of a recent road accident prompted a Palestinian blogger in Israel to comment.
Trinidad & Tobago: Politics & Race
“When it comes to race in politics, Trinidad and Tobago has a colourful past”: Taran Rampersad thinks it's time for a change.
Trinidad & Tobago: Long Live The Queen!
Tongue very much in cheek, This Beach Called Life is pleased that the Queen of England is coming to Trinidad, since the Minister of Works, “fearing his ass would be highlighted in the international press…announced how, after years of looking, his Ministry suddenly found out what was blocking the drains...
Cuba: Feeling the Disconnect
Cuba's Generation Y feels like a nomad in cyberspace, but is confident that “one day my blog will be found on a server on this Island and, believe me, it will not be because it has performed an ideological pirouette.”
Bermuda: PATI Problems
Vexed Bermoothes says that Bermuda's draft freedom of information law “is a rather opaque transparency law. It also misses a singular opportunity to protect whistleblowers…”
St. Lucia: Death of the Artiste?
“In the Caribbean you’re more likely to wake up one day in summer and find it snowing than find a writer or poet who believes that the way to get ahead in the book trade and the literary field is to look to the governments for support”: St. Lucia-based Caribbean...
Peru: The Abortion Debate
The abortion debate in Peru has reemerged due to a bill that has been approved in the Special Committee of the Penal Code in the Peruvian Congress, which would decriminalize abortion in cases of rape or congenital disorders in the fetus.
Caribbean: Rethinking Online Publishing
Caribbean bloggers imagine an online writing and publishing community using participatory media to overcome the difficulties of book publishing in the region.
Nepal: What Next?
Ujjwal Acharya at The Radiant Star comments on the recent political deadlock between the Maoists and the other political parties of Nepal: “if Maoists decide to launch a nationwide movement against the government, it could be a bad decision. If they fail… Then what next?”
Bhutan: Perspective On Child Labor
“The malignant hypocrisy hangs in the air when a rich official’s wife ill-treats her maidservant, who is only a child, while her husband attends international conferences and speaks to people about GNH (gross national happiness). It happens in Bhutan,” reports Di at On The Job blog.
Pakistan: Students Protest Closure Of Educational Institutions
When the Pakistani leaders are seemingly not doing enough, local citizens and bloggers are filling the vacuum. Students in Islamabad and Karachi are protesting in the streets denouncing all acts of terrorism and the indefinite closure of educational institutions and some bloggers took interviews of the protesters. Kalsoom at CHUP!...
Bangladesh: Conference On 1971 Genocide
Mash attended the 2nd conference on the 1971 Bangladesh Genocide organized by the Human Rights Institute and the Bangladesh Genocide Study Group at Kean University and posted about it in his blog Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying. “The focus was on eyewitness accounts, documentation and memorialization of the...
UAE: Sending a Child to School
Sending a child to school for the first time, could be difficult on many parents. Palestinian Eman, who lives in the UAE, discusses her thoughts and feelings on her son's first day at the nursery.
Kyrgyzstan: New Prime Minister Discussed by Internet Users
One of Kyrgyzstan’s wealthiest men, the prominent government official Daniyar Usenov, was appointed the republic’s Prime Minister. President Kurmanbek Bakiev has already signed the appropriate orders. Daniyar Toktogulovich was among a list of possible candidates. Possible, but, to be honest, undesirable. At least, this is what the overwhelming majority of...
Uzbekistan: Oppositionist returns from exile
Musafirbek writes that leader of the Birdamlik movement in exile, Bakhodir Choriyev, is returning to Uzbekistan.
Kyrgyzstan: Administrative reform
Aravanski reports that the Kyrgyzstan President announced extensive reforms in public administration system, including a massive reduction of the number of officials.
Kazakhstan: Atomic Lake
Michael Forster Rothbart offers a photo-essay about the Semipalatinsk Polygon in Kazakhstan, where the Soviet Union was testing its nuclear bombs.
Turkmenistan: Trafficking in human beings
Annasoltan writes about the problem of human trafficking in Turkmenistan against the background of persistent economic hardship, porous borders and the regime's attempts to demur and defer the issue.
