14 August 2011

Stories from 14 August 2011

Philippines: Uproar over Sorry State of Manila Zoo

  14 August 2011

The sorry state of Manila Zoo caused a stir among Filipino netizens after photos were posted online resulting in the rise of the keywords “Manila Zoo” as a popular trending topic on Twitter last month. A petition was initiated to stop the plan to get more animals for the zoo

Colombia: The FTA With the United States From the Blogosphere

  14 August 2011

With the pact signed in Washington to increase the debt ceiling, the United States Congressional leaders returned to the topic of the free trade agreement (FTA) with Panama, South Korea and Colombia. Since this is precisely a topic that has been in discussion for years, the free trade agreement one has attracted more critics than sympathizers in the Colombian blogosphere.

Pakistan: Netizens Protest Moral Policing On Art Curator

  14 August 2011

A few days ago police stormed into Nairang Art Gallery in Lahore. The raid was carried out on the pretext that the female curator of the gallery was wearing a sleeveless shirt and was intermingling with other men, something quite contrary to the views held by the conservatives here and thus fringing upon obscenity.

Russia-Georgia-US: Versions of War

  14 August 2011

Eugene Ivanov of The Ivanov Report – on the third anniversary of the 2008 Russo-Georgian war – argues that US demands that Georgia should control its entire territory to become a NATO-member was a key motivation for escalation of the South Ossetian conflict into outright war.

US-Russia: Reset in the Balance

  14 August 2011

Gordon Hahn of Russia: Other Points of View provides perspective to the gradual decay of US Russia reset policy against the background of the 2008 Russo-Georgian war and increasing political turmoil in Ukraine.

China Model in Two Different Cities

  14 August 2011

In the past few years, the term "China Model" has been widely discussed among intellectuals in China, and is now slowly spreading to other developing countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa. In short, the China Model is a system of government that is based upon economic freedom and political repression.

Armenia: Welcome to Turkey

  14 August 2011

One Hell of a Ride posts an update on its motorcycle trip from Armenia across Turkey. The blogger has now entered the country from Georgia and says that Georgian police are so much more polite and professional than their Armenian counterparts while also noting that Turkish border guards welcomed him...

Armenia: Biking and Tweeting through Turkey

  14 August 2011

One Hell of a Ride, an Armenian Biker's blog, says that it is travelling across neighbouring Turkey on a motorcycle. The journey will cover over 4,500 kilometers and take in more than 80 cities and towns. The blog plans to update its readers on the adventure en route, including via...

China: Large NIMBY Protest Erupts in Dalian

  14 August 2011

A Sunday morning sit-in protest in downtown Dalian, Liaoning province, against a chemical factory located in the city turned into a large-scale procession through the streets. Police were out in full force, but so too were the microbloggers.