10 May 2011

Stories from 10 May 2011

Costa Rica: When National Music Turns out to be Copied

  10 May 2011

Some Costa Rican bloggers were terribly disappointed with their musical memories after reading Luis Alonso Murillo's blog post: 11 songs we all believed were national and turned out to be covers [es]. As one commenter wrote: the foundations of national “chiqui-chiqui” music… weren't even national.

Unesco report on Singapore media

  10 May 2011

A Unesco report cites the “heavily regulated” mainstream media in Singapore while recognizing blogs and other new media sites as offering “alternative discourse on important socio-political issues like domestic politics, rights of gays and senior citizens.”

Bangladesh: Measures Against Extra Judicial Killings

  10 May 2011

Mahadi Hasan Talukder discusses a recent report of Human Rights Watch, which recommends that to stop the extra judicial killings, the Bangladesh government should take make major steps to ensure accountability and reform in the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) forces or disband it.

Bieber Fever Hits Brunei

  10 May 2011

Justin Bieber had sold out concerts in several Southeast Asian countries but it seems he missed out Brunei. And this prompted Bieber fans in Brunei to use the Internet via Twitter, blogs, and YouTube to convince the singer to visit Brunei.

Iran: Ahmadinejad's “Exorcist” Arrested

Twenty-five close collaborators and supporters of Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his influential chief staff, Esfandyar Rahim Mashai, have been arrested, allegedly including “exorcist” or “djinn catcher” Abbas Ghaffari. Many speculate this is due to a quarrel between Ahmadinejad and the Islamic Republic's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.

Pakistan: Save The Nukes

  10 May 2011

Shahid Hassan at Teeth Maestro wonders as the US navy seals could finish their operation to kill Osama Bin Laden without challenge from Pakistani defense system, someday the nuclear arms of Pakistan could be stolen.

Trinidad & Tobago: Dangerous Dogs

  10 May 2011

ban-d-wagonist and Plain Talk blog about urgent need for legislation on the heels of the latest incident in which a mother was mauled to death “by dangerous dogs improperly restrained.”

East Timor: An Alternative Reading of the Human Development Report

  10 May 2011

Following the launch of the United Nations “Human Development Report 2011 – Timor Leste” [pdf], the portuguese economist Almeida Serra, from the blog É a economia, estúpido! (It's the economy, stupid!) [pt], makes an alternative analysis. Serra claims that a significative share of the oil revenues have no impact in...

Iran: Dogs Arrested (Again)

Iranian security forces are back in the streets for a sequel to their infamous action of 2007: arresting dogs. Iran's government considers keeping pet dogs un-Islamic, but has mostly tolerated it. Now, according to Iranian newspapers, several dogs were recently confiscated in a new crackdown.

Angola: The Way of Being of the Traditional Markets

  10 May 2011

Can the traditional markets of the world “[reflect] the living culture and [give] the sense of place better than any city tour ever could, in more depth than the destination’s best museum”? Anja Mutic, from the blog Ever The Nomad believes so and offers us a glimpse into the markets...

Mexico: Images From May 8 ‘March for Peace’

  10 May 2011

Freelance photographer Michael Lettieri shares pictures of Mexico's ‘march for peace’ in his blog: “Traumatized by gruesome massacres of northbound immigrants and senseless crossfire killings, Mexican society has begun to push back against government policies. On Sunday [May 8], a march for peace arrived in the zocalo, waving white flags...

Bolivia: Keeping Aymara Alive Through TV?

  10 May 2011

M. Luk’aña Champi [es] wonders why Bolivia doesn't have a TV channel in Aymara or Quechua, considering that the country is now ruled by an ‘indigenous government': “Modern media like radio and television are ways to keep a language alive and in full use. When a language is not used...

Honduras: Teachers on Hunger Strike

  10 May 2011

Quotha posts pictures of a teachers’ hunger strike. Prensa Latina reports that on the day the pictures were taken, May 8, “Honduran teachers announced they would continue their hunger strike until the government reinstates the jobs of more than 300 suspended teachers.”

Côte d'Ivoire: Pro-Gbagbo Militiamen Chanting ‘ADO’

  10 May 2011

Youtube User Vespuca17 posted on May 1, 2011, a video [fr] of pro-Gbagbo militiamen chanting the name of the new President of Côte d'Ivoire, Alassane Dramane Ouattara, ‘ADO’. To some this is one sign of the possible reconciliation the country has been seeking since the capture of former president Laurent Gbagbo.