14 May 2013

Stories from 14 May 2013

Lebanon: Blogger Beaten for Taking Photos

Lebanese blogger Habib Battah narrates how he was held against his consent, forced to delete photographs of ruins from his phone camera and repeatedly assaulted in this post on the Beirut Report. When he reported the case to his local police station, the officers in charge said it was his...

24 Untranslatable Expressions

  14 May 2013

If languages are living beings, it would be correct to talk in plural and think of each of the existing languages in the world as a unique species […]. Therefore, each language has its own expressions that, proudly, present themsleves as untranslatable to other languages […]. Website PijamaSurf [es] lists...

Yemen: Focus on Education!

In a country where the illiteracy rate of both sexes (15 years and above) is almost 40 per cent, education and the empowerment of the women and youth is an imperative necessity for any concrete development in Yemen. Activists argue why education should be a right and not a privilege.

Spain: Bullfighting Nuns vs. Animal-Loving Children

  14 May 2013

The children of "El cuarto hocico", a virtual animal protection group in the form of a blog created by children from Orba de Muel school (Spain), offered the nuns of the La Aguilera monastery all their money, 1000€, so they would discard the idea of holding a bullfight to raise funds.

Laos Defines National Dress

  14 May 2013

To further promote Lao culture, the government has organized a seminar which defined the country's national dress to be used during formal events. For men the suit will be made from Lao silk fabric and cut in a Lao style. The women’s suit is also from Lao silk fabric cut...

Is Italy Ready for an African-born Minister?

  14 May 2013

“Is Italy ready for an African-born government minister?,” Donata Columbro asks: Two months after the recent elections, Italy has a new government. And Cécile Kyenge, 48 years old, an eye surgeon and Congo-born Italian citizen, is the new Minister for Integration in the cabinet of Prime Minister Enrico Letta.

Toy Dolls that Speak African Languages

  14 May 2013

Myweku writes about the introduction of Rooti Dolls, by Chris and Ada Ngoforo, a Nigerian couple: The 12 Rooti dolls are programmed to speak in several African languages. Amongst them, there’s Nina, a “vibrant girl” with Nigerian parents, who “loves watching Nollywood” and can interact in the Nigerian languages of...

WeiboSuite: New Tool to Analyze Sina Weibo

  14 May 2013

WeiboSuite is a new toolbox for journalists and netizens. Created by data journalists from the University of Hong Kong, WeiboSuite provides English translations of censored materials on Weibo and tools to translate textual images.  

Chinese Web Floods White House with Petitions

  14 May 2013

An unsolved case of poisoning of a 19-year college student in 1994 has resurfaced in the Chinese social media sphere. It has not only grabbed the wide attention of Chinese netizens, but also triggered a wave of petitions to the White House.

Blogshops are Popular in Singapore

  14 May 2013

Lucas Chua writes about the blogshop phenomenon in Singapore. A blogshop is an online fashion store that uses a blog. In Singapore, four of the country’s ten most-searched stores are blogshops.

Saint Lucia Jazz Festival's Controversial Couture

  14 May 2013

This year's Saint Lucia Jazz and Arts Festival featured a fashion show dubbed “Hot Couture”, intended to boost the island's burgeoning fashion industry by creating a showcase for local models and for designers both in Saint Lucia and throughout the region - but it was filled with controversy and behind-the-scenes wrangling.

Russia's State-Contracted Revolutionaries

When Vladislav Surkov left the government last week, it triggered an avalanche of speculation about what the loss of “the grey cardinal” means for Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev in particular and his “liberal” political clan in general. At the center of an ongoing related police probe is Duma Deputy and anti-Putin protest movement leader Ilya Ponomarev, who earned a surprising $750,000 for his work for the Skolkovo innovation center.