Stories from 20 September 2010
Chile: Police Break up Display of Mapuche Flag During Bicentennial Celebrations
Montserrat Nicolas shares a citizen video of an incident during the bicentennial celebrations; the video shows police breaking up a display of a Mapuche flag and apprehending those involved.
Honduras: Video of September 15 Protests in San Pedro Sula
Hibueras [es] shares a video of the September 15 protests led by the Resistance Front, showing how police responded to what the narrator in the video calls a peaceful protest.
India: The Greed For A Baby Boy
AmreekanDesi shares a bizarre news where a mother's claim on a baby boy born within a few minutes of the delivery of her baby girl was turned down after DNA test. This shows the desire for male child by many Indian mothers.
Venezuela: Using Crowdsourcing to Report on Elections
Through video, pictures and links, citizens can report on any event or incident related to the upcoming September 26 elections in Venezuela thanks to Dale Poder A Tu Voto [es] (Give your vote power), a site modeled after Ushahidi. The site uses crowdsourcing to promote transparency, participation and education.
Pakistan: The Economics Of The Electronic Media
“Pakistani media’s financial shortfall is compensated either by mysterious sources or the electronic-media bubble is heading for a big burst” opines Riaz ul Hassan at Cafe Pyala, in his analysis of the economics of the electronic media of Pakistan.
Mexico: What is the Country Doing to Address the Oil Spill?
Pepe Flores answers the question [es], “What is Mexico doing to address the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico?” He says the Environment and Natural Resource Secretary (Semarnat) has dedicated a specific place [es] on its website to share this information.
India: Wither Kashmir? Or Is Reconciliation Possible?
The Indian central government has sent a fact-finding delegation including lawmakers from all major political parties to mitigate the bloodshed and tensions in the Jammu and Kashmir region. The Indian blogosphere has finally woken up on this issue and bloggers are sharing messages of hope, reconciliation, integrity and peace.
Pakistan: Do You Care About The Plights Of The Flood Victims?
While some countries of the world came forward to donate for the victims of the recent Pakistan Floods, most international responses were slow. Cindy Yang looks for the answers in the blogosphere.
Lebanon: “The City that Never Sleeps”
“I felt safer than I had ever done in London, a city that has one CCTV for every twenty or so people, a city that stands as a beacon of Western capitalism and success. The West was wrong, I thought. This country no longer deserved a reputation of violence and...
Lebanon: Why in the Name of God?
“Show me a single religion condemning; As blasphemy, the biggest sin of all, Speaking in the name of God. Puny avatar; Why in the name of God?…” are the first few lines of a poem written by Adonis49.
Lebanon: Remembering Sabra and Shatila
“‘History is written by the victors’ wrote Winston Churchill. We emerged from civil war with a slogan of exhaustion: ‘No victor, no vanquished.’ How do we write our history? We don't know,” concludes Oussama Hayek in a post about his memories and thoughts on the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian Camps Massacres which...
Lebanon: Websites of Political Parties
Since September 1, 2010, The Oak of the South (Ar) began reviewing the websites of the various political parties in Lebanon. Each review includes the evaluation of the content, accessibility, general design, etc. Links to the posts are indexed here.
Lebanon: “Freak Marriages”
“… if you guessed they seen each other’s pictures on Facebook, liked each other and set a date for a wedding, you guessed right!” reports BeirutiAdventures about the “quick, rushed and weird marriage” of an acquaintance.
Lebanon: Let's Talk about Movies
Anis Tabet gives his snappy reviews and ratings of movies in his blog “Let's Talk About Movies“.
Middle East: Iran Launches New Movie Channel in Arabic
Iran inaugurated it's first Arabic language movie channel during the Muslim feast of Eid-ul-Fitr, which commemorates the end of the holy month of Ramadan. The new channel will be called iFilm and it is meant to target about 300 million Arabic speakers.
Bermuda: Battling Hurricane Igor
Remaining true to its most famous namesake, Hurricane Igor has, thus far, been the biggest and strongest storm of the 2010 Atlantic Hurricane Season, battering the tiny island of Bermuda even as it maintains its course towards Newfoundland, Canada. A handful of Bermudian bloggers managed to get information out in the midst of the barrage…
South Korea: Pulling Out Four Teeth to Evade Military Obligation
Pulling out one's own teeth is considered one of the most gruesome and painful acts one can do onto oneself. In South Korea, where military service is mandatory, an allegation that a Korean singer had pulled out at least four healthy teeth in order to avoid conscription has dominated the headlines for several weeks now.
South Africa: Thou Shall Not Burn the Bible
A South African businessman and law student Mohammed Vawda planned to burn the Bible on September 11, 2010 in Johannersburg central business district. He claims that he was enraged by pastor Terry Jones who wanted to burn the Koran in the United States of America. The South African High Court stopped Mohammed from setting the Bible on fire arguing that the act was an insult to all religions. The ruling has receive mixed reactions from bloggers.
Sao Tome & Principe: Reflections of a Foreign Teacher
Raphaela Nazaré reflects about her experience as a Brazilian teacher in Sao Tome and Principe. She says that although the students are more disciplined than what she had seen in Brazil, the ferule is still a practice in Saotomean schools. Raphaela wonders if “this type of educational regime is valid...
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Quality Control
“Where is our truth regulator? Where is the person or the persons concerned with demanding the maintenance of some standard of quality among our leaders?”: Discuss SVG is seriously considering not voting.
Trinidad & Tobago, Bahamas: Film on Gay Life
gpottt highlights ” a stunning new film about gay life and the Caribbean” which will be screened at the upcoming Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival.
