26 January 2010

Stories from 26 January 2010

Jordan: Tweeps Celebrate their Country

  26 January 2010

In an initiative that was adopted by tweeps from other Arab countries, Jordanian users of micro-blogging site Twitter created and maintained a hashtag that celebrates the top 50 things they love about their country. Ebtihal Mahadeen takes a closer look at #Top50Jo.

Russia: Newspaper Web Site Hacked

RuNet Echo  26 January 2010

The Web site of a popular Russian newspaper “Novaya Gazeta” has been hacked today, RIA news agency reported [EN]. Allegedly, the attack has been provoked by the article [RUS] about a controversial demolition [ENG] of  houses at the luxury Rechnik neighborhood in Moscow.

Sri Lanka: Presidential Election Results Online

  26 January 2010

Lanka Libertarian will start to update the district-wise results of today's Sri Lankan presidential election as soon as they are gradually published. The Sri Lankan election department website will update the official results.

South Korea: Mediact to be dismantled

  26 January 2010

Mediact, South Korea's first public media center, will be dismantled in 1st of February under the Lee Myung Bak's government (more from interlocals). A petition has been launched to save the center.

Bermuda: Takeover Bid

  26 January 2010

“My opinion is that the PLP takeover of the City is not about reform; I believe it is about power and real estate development. Watch the money”: Bermuda's Vexed Bermoothes weighs in on what he calls the government's “power grab”.

Guyana, Haiti, U.S.A.: Redemption Song?

  26 January 2010

Signifyin’ Guyana responds to a compatriot's comments about aid to Haiti: “I'm inclined to believe the incentive to give to Haiti is more in search of some kind of redemption, rather than a calculated move to keep Haitians out of America…”

College Students Protest on Japanese Employment @ TOKYO

  26 January 2010

Spurred by a protest late last year by a small number of college students in Hokkaido Prefecture, a number of students in Tokyo organized for a demonstration protesting against Japan's employment system. Coming together under the name “College Graduates Protest on Japanese Employment @ TOKYO” (就活くたばれデモ@TOKYO [ja]) , the organization...

Kenya: Cartoonists of the Year Awards

  26 January 2010

KenyaImagine attended Cartoonist of the Year Awards in Nairobi, Kenya: “We attended the first, and likely, annual Cartoonist of the year awards at the Swiss ambassador's last week. The event organised by Katuni, a local coalition of Cartoonists…”

Sri Lanka: Election Irregularities

  26 January 2010

Indrajit Samarajiva at Indi.ca comments that with the presence of election monitors and somewhat independent election commission, rigging elections in Sri Lanka is tough. However: “the main method of influencing elections is intimidation, and that’s what’s going on.” Read his reports on explosions in Jaffna and irregularities in Batticaloa.

Philippines: “Renewable Marriage Bill”

  26 January 2010

A partylist group in the Philippines wants to introduce a law that would put a ten-year expiration date on marriage contracts. As expected this unique proposal generated an intense reaction in the blogosphere.

Nepal: Renewed Focus On Indo-Nepal Relations

  26 January 2010

Following two high profile visits from New Delhi-Foreign Minister S.M Krishna and Army Chief Deepak Kapoor, the India Nepal relation is being discussed with renewed vigor in both Indian and Nepali blogs.

Sudan: Man throws shoe at Omar al Bashir

  26 January 2010

Ayaa writes about a man who threw his shoe at the Sudanese President: “One of the most offensive and humiliated action in the Arabs and Muslim culture is to throw a shoe at someone, let alone that some one is a head of the country.”