Stories about East Asia from July, 2009
Japan: Housing statistics
Joe Jone from Mutantfrog reads into the newly released housing statistics.
Chinese NGOs: reading political signs in the fate of Gongmeng
David Bandurski from China Media Project translated an article written by Qian Gang which comments on the recent crack down of Gongmeng, a corporate registered citizen rights NGO, by the Beijing government.
China: Sulfur mining in Big Tree County
Asia Society released an old documentary about pollution problems caused by sulfur mining in Da Shu Xian, or Big Tree County, in Sichuan province. The documentary was produced in 1992.
Laos: Pollution from paper factory
Lao Voices uploads a video which shows pollution from a paper factory in Laos.
Lao SEA Games 2009
The 25th Southeast Asian Games will take place in Laos on December 9-18. Visit the official site of the games.
Situation of Indonesian farmers
Maya observes that Indonesian farmers are still suffering, especially during food crisis.
Philippines: Taal Volcano
nomad4ever writes about Taal Volcano in the Philippines. His description of the volcano: A volcano on an island in a lake on an island in an ocean.
Japan: DPJ's election manifesto
Tobias Harris from observing Japan comments on Democratic party's 2009 general election manifesto. The manifesto covers five major areas: (1) cutting waste (essentially political and administrative reform); (2) child care and education; (3) pensions and health care; (4) regionalization; and (5) employment and the economy.Part I and Part II.
Taiwan: Racist cartoon causes controversy
Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs published a booklet featuring two cartoon characters to inform the public about the proposed free trade agreement between Taiwan and China, commonly referred to as ECFA. The cartoons quickly attracted criticism as they were considered derogatory to certain ethnic groups.
Philippines: Reactions to the 9th State of the Nation Address
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo gave her 9th State of the Nation Address last Monday, July 27, 2009. This post is a sample of the varied responses to the speech in the Philippine blogosphere.
Japan: Parental child abduction
Given the rise in cases where children born to a Japanese mother and a foreign father are abducted by the Japanese mothers and brought to Japan without the father's consent, the U.S., France, Canada and the U.K. have recently urged Japan to sign the Hague Convention.
Japan: Yokohama Mayor Resigns
Shisaku on Yokohama Mayor Nakada Hiroshi's resignation: “When an electoral shoo-in like Nakada takes a leap like this into the unknown, it is just one more indication that postwar system is on the verge of final, precipitous collapse”.
Malaysia: Remembering film director Yasmin Ahmad
Popular Malaysian filmmaker Yasmin Ahmad passed away suddenly on July 25. The Malaysian blogosphere took to their keyboards to pay tribute to the icon.
China: “Internet addiction disorder” is a joke
Alice Liu from DANWEI translated an article written by Chang Ping, who pointed out that the government's stopping of electro-shock treatment does not mean that they won't reissue Internet addiction as a disease － they are just changing the standards for treatment.
Japan: Election manifesto
Paolo Soldano at Japanblues sums up (it) the main points of the election campaigns of LDP and DPJ.
Philippines: Eating Taho
My Cebu PhotoBlog posts pictures of Taho, a popular snack item in the Philippines made of bean curd, tapioca balls, and sweet ’sauce’ from liquefied sugar.
What is Team Building in the Filipino Language?
Letters to Mindanao looks for the Filipino equivalent of the word teambuilding.
China: One-Child Policy Heading for a Revision
According to Time magazine, the one-child policy, a cornerstone of contemporary China, will be changed when word got out late last week that Shanghai was encouraging couples to have additional offspring. For three decades, millions of Chinese parents have raised their only children under the strict prescriptions of China’s family...
China: Missing iPhone pressured mainland worker to suicide
Sun Dangyang, 25, was born in a small village. He earned his college degree in Harbin University and was then employed by Foxconn, a Taiwanese company and one of Apple’s largest contractors. His parents were proud of their son however they never expected that the job and an iPhone would...
China: The New York Times Enrages Netizens
C. Custer from China Geeks reported on anti-CNN's criticism on the New York Times’ misleading photo captions concerning the Urumqi riot.
China: How Buildings Are Built In Shenzhen
ESWN translated a short piece (with photo) from Voice of China BBS featuring Lao Liu, who used pole to carry bricks off the boats for 21 years at the Xixiang pier.
About our East Asia coverage
