Stories from 11 January 2012
Guyana: Considering Corruption
“To invest, you got to pay your dues. Self-righteous people does call it ‘bribe'”: Guyana-Gyal is “balk[ing] ‘n’ squawk[ing] against paying the staff in the birth certificate office.”
Ukraine: Blaming Instead of Renegotiating
LEvko of Foreign Notes argues that Ukraine's government has conveniently chosen to pass the blame on former Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko for the high gas prices the country has to pay, instead of trying to renegotiate prices with Russian gas company Gazprom, which allegedly was allowed by the gas contract...
Russia: A Liberal Use of the Western Toolbox?
Leoš Tomíček of Austere Insomniac addresses the chances of Russia's liberal opposition against the backdrop of a US diplomatic cable leaked in 2008, and ponders upon what use the liberals might have of a western toolbox in the political struggle.
Australia: Politician Sprayed Over Migrant Deodorant “Dog-Whistle”
Teresa Gambaro, a Federal Member of the Australian Parliament, called for immigrants on work visas to be taught ‘social norms’ such as the use of deodorants and waiting in orderly queues. Netizens 'sprayed' the web with comments about the issue.
Belarus: Running for Office or Not
Sergei Balykin at Belorusski Partizan discusses [ru] the pros and cons of running for public office in the authoritarian regime of Lukashenko's Belarus, based on his own campaign experience from local elections in the Minsk region.
Guinea-Bissau: President Passes Away Amidst Political Upheaval
After being hospitalized for almost three months, the President of Guinea-Bissau, Malam Bacai Sanhá, passed away in Paris on Monday, January 9. He was 64 years and died of diabetes, leaving the small Portuguese-speaking African country in a delicate political situation.
Macedonia: Crowdmapping Projects Overview
Boris Ristovski provided an overview of crowdmapping projects in Macedonia [mk] and asked [mk] local netizens to respond to his online survey [mk], part of his master's thesis research.
Peru: Sugar Labs Community Says Goodbye to Aymara Translator
José Henry Alanoca Laura, an Aymara translator for the open-sourced Sugar Learning Platform, has passed away. The Peruvian Sugar Labs community sends a message of condolence through the blog Somos Azúcar (“We are sugar”) [es].
