Stories from 16 May 2011
Ecuador: Three Years After the Factory Tragedy
April 19 marked three years since the fire at the Factory discotheque in Quito while a gothic rock concert was in progress. As a result, 19 were killed and 24 wounded. This anniversary, a homage was paid and a move to sensitise the people about this issue was made by the family and friends of the victims.
Lebanon: A Personal Account from Deadly Border Protest
“In a nutshell, protesters amassed at the border armed with flags, slogans and rocks from the ground, and Israel responded by opening fire and killing nearly a dozen youths” stated Sean in a detailed post about his personal experience as he took part in the protest held in the Lebanese border town of Maroun...
Trinidad & Tobago: A Prince Among Wolves?
Plain Talk says that “political wolves are gathering” around the leader of the Congress of the People, noting that the party “needs at its helm a true champion divorced from business as usual, energized and able, armed with vision for Party and country and set on fire with purpose.”
Trinidad & Tobago: The Man Behind the Allen Prize
Through The Allen Prize for Young Writers, Lisa Allen-Agostini honours the memory of her beloved father.
Trinidad & Tobago: New Politics?
“The PP government is establishing a ‘new normal’ insofar as ethics and acceptable standards of behaviour in public office are concerned”: Despite the mixed signals, Afra Raymond welcomes the new direction.
Cuba: Online Challenges
“By paying in hard currency you can get on the information highway. That’s the good news. Let’s look at the bad. Virtually speaking, Cuba is an island split in two. Outside Havana, Cubans are not allowed to connect to the Internet in tourist facilities that have that service”: Iván García...
Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago: More on Bocas
More on the Bocas Lit Fest, from Annie Paul.
Brazil: How a Blog Post Ended Up in the Cannes Festival
A brazilian blogger, Alê Felix, unintentionally made it to the Cannes Festival, after writing [pt] about a moving and random conversation she had had with a boy in Rio de Janeiro. Her post was picked up by the film-maker Felipe Joffily who is presenting a short film on it today...
Malawi: Our Old Grumpy President
Daniso's thoughts about the “old grumpy president” of Malawi: “Our president brooks no criticism and doesn’t tolerate complaints. Dare criticize and in his eyes you’ll be nothing but an unemployable fool. Dare slight his performance on governance and he’ll take to the podium to rant that you're a nkhwezule, an...
Kenya: Rest In Peace, Samuel Wanjiru
The world woke up this morning to the news of the death of one of the best talents in the world of marathons. Kenya’s Samuel Wanjiru who won his country’s first ever gold medal at the Beijing Olympics and went on to conquer major marathons in Chicago and London died after jumping from the first-floor balcony of his house.
Cameroon: Diaspora-driven Cyberspace: A Platform for Civic Engagement or a Threat?
Dibussi asks whether the Cameroon’s Diaspora-driven cyberspace is a platform for civic engagement or a threat to the Biya regime: “Simply put, the Biya regime has never viewed Cameroonian cyberspace as a viable space for civic engagement and public discourse, instead, it sees it as a threat to the regime...
Nigeria: 15 year old Nigerian teenager gets admission to Harvard
Naija Feed reports that a 15 year old Nigerian girl who has been offered admission to 13 prestigious universitires in the United States has become the latest media sensation: “She is Saheela Ibraheem, 15 year old daughter of a Nigerian immigrant family living in New Jersey, United States.”
Africa: On Mobile Banking And Cyber Agriculture
Francophone blog afriqueavenir.org, in its review of new technologies in Africa [fr], highlights how mobile telephony is essential to economical growth: ” Providers [of mobile phones] offer unlimited country-to-country roaming packages in addition to technologies able to meet the demand for online services, such as mobile banking or even «...
Africa: African Champions League Results
In a post published on May 9 on Afrik.com, Ali Makha analyses [fr] the results of the African Champions League: ” The semi-quarter finals in the African Cup gave their verdict this week-end. In Champions League, TP Mazembe saved the day against WAC, while in the CAF Cup, FUS Rabat had...
Zimbabwe: Inclusive Government Watch 2011
Read Zimbabwe's Inclusive Government Watch for May 2011: “This month, surprisingly, violations in the form of legal harassment of perceived opposition politicians and supporters, rose to our most prominent category of violations, with 46 recorded articles (37.4% of total).”
Denmark: Controversial Law Re-Introduces Border Control
Danish nationalist right wing party, The Danish People’s Party (Dansk Folkeparti/DF), recently announced the re-introduction of controls at the country's borders with Germany and Sweden. The centre-right minority government in Copenhagen capitulated and the proposal went through. Danish netizens have reacted to the news.
South Korea: Clashes Surrounding Fur Fashion Show
South Korea's capital, Seoul city has told Italian fashion house Fendi to pull fur products from a fashion show scheduled for next month in Seoul as animal rights groups and net users condemned the city government for inviting Fendi for its promotion event. Fendi is trying to negotiate. Korea's citizen/blogger...
Chileans Bang Pots and Pans in Protest Against Hidroaysen Dam
Una Mirada de la Realidad [es] shares three citizen videos of “cacerolazos” –protests where participants bang pots and pans– on May 15 in Valdivia, Santiago and Valparaiso against the Hidroaysen dam project approved last week.
Peru: Second Electoral Round in Review
Jacqueline Fowks reviews [es] Peru's presidential elections one month after the first round of voting. Candidates Ollanta Humala (Gana Perú) and Keiko Fujimori (Fuerza 2011) seek to gain voter's support in the second electoral round which will last for another 3 weeks until June 5.
Portugal: A Proposal to Make Free Culture Illegal
Luis Alves writes about the Socialist Party proposal regarding privacy copies [pt], which says that authors have the inalienable and non-waivable right to the perception of a compensation for their work. Glyn Moody adds “if Creative Commons licenses become illegal in Portugal, this would presumably mean that contributing to Wikipedia...
Azerbaijan: Eurovision Pride
Scary Azeri comments on her country's success in this year's Eurovision Song Contest by saying that she doesn't understand how ecstatic many of her fellow Azerbaijanis are about their victory. In particular the blog notes the high level of poverty in the country while also wondering if Eurovision fans from...
