Global Voices Digest

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Global Voices Online – June 23, 2006

China: Revolution’s victims’ stories blogged, not forgotten (2/4)

“Chinese blogger-journalist Ran Yunfei has spent a large part of his life researching the stories of those painted, purged and persecuted as right wing elements during China’s Cultural Revolution; unable to have the stories published in any official media, he’s turned to his own well-known blog.” In this second installment of Ran Yunfei’s recent talk at a Chengdu teahouse, we become better acquainted with some of the forgotten intellectuals and victims of the 1950’s Cultural Revolution. It’s also worthwhile to read Yunfei’s thoughts on his city of residence, Chongqing.

Alaa Is Free

They are the three words we’ve all been waiting to read for over a month and a half now. Elijah Zarwan spoke with the award-winning Egyptian blogger just after his release from detention and has summarized some of the reactions from around the Egyptian blogosphere. Here is a victory for free speech and online activism worth celebrating.

In defense of “the world’s least polite city”, Ukraine’s Orange Coalition gets organized, female suicide rates in China, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Oceania, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 21, 2006

Musique Africaine

I have to admit, it has taken Obi Orjiekwe a few posts to convince me that I am a fan of Ghanaian “hip life.” But now the hybrid genre, which mixes North American hip-hop with West African high life, gets ample attention on all of my playlists. Visit Orjiekwe’s African music roundup to see if you, too, will become a convert.

Ukraine: “The Cars” With Ukrainian Voiceover; Local TV

How does a Hollywood cartoon find resonance among Ukrainian movie theater goers? And for those who prefer to stay at home, what (if anything) does Ukrainian TV have to offer? Veronica Khokhlova has the answers with the help of two translated blog posts.

Echoes from the Tunisian blogosphere

A look at the Tunisian blogosphere inevitably reveals several lamentations over their country’s disappointing World Cup performance against Germany. Meanwhile, off the field: cutting down unemployment, the various contexts of “Sbah El Khir,” and a website that offers downloads of Tunisian movies, plays, music, and more.

World Cup Cultural Treasures from the Lusosphere

It’s a good week for Portuguese-speaking football fans, writes Jose Murilo, as “all three Lusophone countries, Angola, Brazil and Portugal, are still in the contest for the World Cup.” Even the Timorese, in the midst of an anguished domestic conflict, are cheering on their linguistic comrades.

Mexico: Teachers Protest in Oaxaca

Teachers in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca have left their classrooms to occupy the city’s central plaza, where they are demanding a 100% pay raise and improved scholastic infrastructure. Those protests turned violent last Wednesday when the police attempted to forcibly evict the striking teachers and their supporters. Bloggers and photobloggers were at the scene to report developments in far greater detail than packaged news stories could ever allow for.

Alaa finally released, Labour Day in Trinidad and Tobago, social obligations in Tajikstan, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Oceania, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 20, 2006

Polish Blogosphere Roundup

Has online activism reached a sufficiently critical mass in Poland to influence policy decisions? At least one blogger seems convinced, write Jordan & Maria Seidel in their update of the Polish blogosphere. Herein are two distinct online movements expressing Polish public dissent. Also, the blame game following Poland’s dismal World Cup appearance.

This Week In Palestinian Blogs: Fire Dancing

“Gaza is on the brink of implosion, and I’m not sure how much more it can take.” That is how one Palestinian blogger described the state of her homeland as she continues a speaking tour across the United States. Unfortunately, searching through Naseem Tarawnah’s review of Palestinian blogs, it is difficult to find evidence of the contrary.

Football & Presidential Election

Moving on from Iran’s quick elimination in this year’s World Cup, Farid Pouya notes that many bloggers focused on the one year anniversary of President Ahmadinejad’s electoral victory. Or, perhaps better put, they offered several theories as to why reformist candidate Dr. Mostafa Moin lost.

Aung San Suu Kyi’s Birthday in Detention

Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi is spending yet another birthday in detention, but bloggers ensure that neither she nor her message is forgotten.

Remembering Soweto 30 years later, Slovakia’s Sunday election, dealing with Jamaican police, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Oceania, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 19, 2006

Truth and Consequences

More than 40 days have passed since Global Voices first published about the detention of Egyptian bloggers including cyber-activist, Alaa Abd El-Fatah. This is not the first time bloggers in Egypt have been arrested for what they have published online, notes Elijah Zarwan, but unlike last year’s arrest of Abd al-Karim Suleiman, this time around the world is watching. How will the Egyptian government respond to the new online agitators and their globally distributed watchdogs?

China: Blogs for the ladies and the superstars

When you think of the next billion internet users, it’s a safe bet that a large percentage will connect from China. Already, as John Kennedy relates, some of the most popular Chinese bloggers attract readerships of tens, sometimes hundreds, of thousands. But what makes these alpha(female)-bloggers so popular? Kennedy translates three recent posts to give English readers an idea.

Turkey is Typing…

“The global game” has become the focus of global conversation and Turkish bloggers, like most, have their eyes set on Germany and this year’s World Cup. Deborah Ann Dilley has the football rundown and also points us to a campaign by some Turkish bloggers to help an injured countryman return home from the United States.

From Kingdom of Cambodia to United States of America

Long time readers of Global Voices have good reason to stereotype young Cambodian bloggers as intelligent, ambitious, and hard-working. ThaRum Bun gives us even more evidence to support the claim in this interview with Fulbright scholar and blogger, Somongkol Teng.

Haiti: Telecom Wars

What will Jamaica-based, Caribbean telecom giant, Digicel bring to the island of Haiti? Improved coverage? Cheaper prices? More jobs? Regulatory wars? A lack of network interoperability? According to the lucid translations of Haitian blog posts by Alice Backer, the answer could very well be yes to all of the above. And to top it off, in the background of the Caribbean controversy lies the global ambitions of an Irish company and its British competitor. This post is a must read for anyone interested in how a multinational corporation makes waves in a small domestic market half way across the world.

Cricket in New Caledonia, voodoo with a click of the mouse, the World Cup team representing a country that does not exist, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Oceania, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 17, 2006

The Discussion Around the “Argentinean Country Brand”

When we hear “national marketing campaign” rarely do we think of the nation itself, but branding a country has become paramount for countries vying for investment and tourism in the global marketplace. Of course, representing a nation’s essence, and perhaps its hope, is no easy task as Jorge Gobbi relates in this summary of Argentine bloggers’ mixed reactions to a previewed glimpse of their country’s new logo.

Arabisc: The Arabic Bloggers Ken, Media, Anti-Blogging and the World Cup

Could it be true? A specific blogging watchdog office within Egypt’s State Security Offices? If the medium is the message, then the free speech nature of weblogs is obviously seen as a potent threat to Egypt’s authoritarian government. Also in Haitham Sabbah’s rundown of the Arabic blogging community: more reaction to the Gaza Beach Tragedy, “Wallism” in Morocco, and Google News in Arabic.

Indonesia: World Cup Fever & Minister Blog

Indonesia, despite never reaching the tournament as an independent country, is following this year’s World Cup just like the rest of the world. A. Fatih Syuhud summarizes Indonesian perspectives on the games and introduces the country’s first blog by a federal minister.

Ukraine, Russia: Dreams of a Biased Person

I have read that the difference between bloggers and journalists is that the bloggers admit their biases. Veronica Khokhlova translates a post by a Ukrainian blogger who, despite her prejudiced feelings towards Russia, wants nothing more than peace and good will between the two countries.

Deadly anti-mining protests in Mongolia, Reunion’s Cirque de Mafate, implications and origins of Japanese Kawaii, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Oceania, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 16, 2006

Interview with Leo Prieto

If you haven’t yet heard of Chilean blogger Leo Prieto then it’s about time you did. The internet superstar is responsible for a small army of some of Latin America’s most popular weblogs including FayerWayer and his own personal site. In this interview with Rosario Lizana, Prieto meditates on the growth and talent of Chile’s blogging community as well as the obstacles confronting Chile’s place as the regional leader in communications technology.

Landing at the Iraqi Blogodrome

The surprise visit by US President George Bush and the death of Al-Qaeda leader Zarqawi continue to elicit an assortment of reactions by Iraqi bloggers. Salam Adil presents them all clearly in this week’s review of political probing and pessimistic realism.

Tamil: Blog aggregators, education, middle east and manslaughter

Tamil blogs have matured considerably from a handful of early adopters to a lively community of aggregators, podcasts, and a directory. And the use of Tamil language on the internet is only likely to increase as Bharat writes of the decision by Tamil Nadu’s new government to make Tamil compulsory in public schools.

Kurdish oral history in Armenia, national identity in a global era, the EU’s response to Polish homophobia, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 15, 2006

West African blogs round-up

They are the small recurring events which serve as bookmarks and measuring sticks for our lives: the arrival of the rainy season, the nostalgic memories of previous World Cups. There are new ideas in evolving democracies like the participation of independent candidates. And there are the unspeakable atrocities such as torture, which has somehow managed to persist into the 21st century. David Ajao covers them all in this review of West African weblogs.

China: Revolution’s victims’ stories blogged, not forgotten (1/4)

What is the history of China’s conservative right wing? Under-researched, certainly. Which is why Ran Yunfei from Sichuan province is leading a movement to better document the right’s legacy in China, especially during the Cultural Revolution. John Kennedy has translated a presentation by Ran Yunfei, which offers a revealing look into Chinese intellectualism, forgotten history, and research methodology. As the victims of China’s Cultural Revolution delve into old age, an inspired group of researchers and bloggers is ensuring that their stories aren’t forgotten.

Kurdistance: Wednesday?

Video lovers will appreciate Deborah Ann Dilley’s most recent review of the Kurdish blogosphere, which includes links to video clips that pick you up, make you think, and make you laugh.

The Week That Was – Bolivian Blogs

Bolivia is less than three weeks from electing its first 255-member constituent assembly, but bloggers in the country see little evidence of active campaigning. Will the new exercise in democracy give greater voice to all sectors of Bolivian society or merely cause more conflict between them? Eduardo Avila gauges bloggers’ positions.

Global Voices in Chinese!

Global Voices has long excelled at bringing the world’s diverse and dispersed conversations to one central meeting place. Unfortunately, those valuable exchanges take place mostly in English. So it is a milestone achievement when Rebecca MacKinnon announces that Taiwanese blogger Portnoy has launched Global Voices in Chinese, bringing our content to readers of the most understood language in the world. It is our highest hope that Portnoy’s project may serve as a model for future efforts to translate Global Voices content into other languages.

What had been Lahore’s only Hindu temple, China’s iPod sweatshops, Amman on Zarqawi, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 13, 2006

What Salvadoran bloggers are saying — about Tony Saca

President Tony Saca recently presented a report to the Salvadoran National Assembly summing up the first two years of his administration’s term. At least two bloggers lament the partisanship with which the report was received while others found the familiar rhetoric to be short on numbers and concrete proposals. While most of Latin America is referenced for its move to the left, Tim Muth’s most recent post examines a measuring point of one of the region’s conservative governments.

World Cup: Iran and Mexico

Commentary leading up to both teams’ opening match concentrated on Iran’s luke warm reception in Germany amid offensive cartoons and controversial statements, but once the whistle blew, bloggers in both countries concentrated on the game.

Latest in French-Speaking Blogs of the Caribbean and Oceania

Not even a table of contents could cover all of the goodness that Alice Backer has managed to translate in her review of francophone blogs from Oceania and the Caribbean. Avid readers will remember the newlyweds Sebastien and Annoella of New Caledonia and enjoy their most recent multimedia offerings. A Guadeloupean blogger stars on a talent show, Port-au-Prince goes global for the World Cup, and a rare earthquake shakes French Guiana.

Voices from Zimbabwe and the Great Lakes

The Zimbabwean “Monitoring and Interception of Communications Centre” is not something that rings with optimism for supporters of free speech. Zim Pundit points us to a post about how the center and its founding Interception of Communications Bill are likely to inspire “self-censorship.” Also: Burundi’s brutality towards journalists, “newspaper gazing” in Uganda, and a frightful journey in a “bodaboda.”

World Cup: Running with the Ronaldos in the blogosphere

“Brazilians love to talk, and now nothing is more important to talk about than the World Cup.” So writes Jose Murilo and the conversation he refers to couldn’t possibly get much more heated. First, trash talking between the country’s star player, Ronaldo, and his president, Lula. Then the prodigy, Ronaldinho, whose quick feet are made for YouTube’s remix culture. And finally, from Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo, who helped his team to a 1-0 victory over Angola. Can’t keep your Ronaldo’s straight? This entertaining post will help.

Doubling class sizes in the Philippines, life in Serbia after Montenegro’s independence, buying and selling lives in China, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.

Global Voices Online – June 12, 2006

India buzzing

No respite for Indian bloggers writes Kamla Bhatt as a week full of Bollywood, a celebrity court case, fuel hikes, cricket, and the World Cup has bloggers pecking away more furiously than ever. Your good news tidbit of the day: carpooling encouraged by the internet.

The Global Voices Show #2

I’m not one to be easily entertained by new technological gimmicks, but I must admit that Georgia Popplewell has won me over with this week’s enhanced AAC version of the Global Voices Show podcast. If you listen to the global showcase in iTunes, each audio excerpt presents its own embedded link, which will take you to the blog of the podcast being featured. From your headphones to Singapore to Kazakhstan to Jordan and beyond: this is a 23 minute journey worth taking.

China: Google’s China Problem

Google’s censorship of search results in China was intensified during the recent 17th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, writes Frank Dai, which has led to more blogger scrutiny over the company’s place and business objective in the Chinese market. Some bloggers have gone so far as to resort to virtual voodoo.

To have GCE O’Level English, or not to have?

An op-ed from Brunei’s only English-language newspaper recently suggested that the ubiquitous O Level English Exam, a requirement to enter the country’s main university, was an outdated “relic of colonial times.” Maurina H, describes the varied reactions inspired by the suggestion.

China: Freethinking young writer takes on the cultural establishment

When is the last time you came across a blog post with more than 6,700 comments? That is the unbelievable avalanche of commentary that follows an inflammatory post by a popular, young, Chinese author lashing out against three prominent, middle-aged artists. Nothing draws a crowd like a good fight and John Kennedy’s translations bring us to the center of the spectacle.

Landing at the Iraqi Blogodrome

Salam Pax has become a household name for much of the international blogosphere. His descriptions of Iraq, equally full of lighthearted sarcasm and poignant purposefulness, have painted our own visions of what it must be like to be in the war-torn nation. Recently, while searching for willing interviewees, he stumbled across what he describes as “the future of Iraq.” Also in Salam Adil’s weekly review: the missing attribution by a British journalist, a blogger’s imprisoned brother, Iraqi LGBT’s claim that life was better under Saddam, and continuing violence.

Global Food Blog Report #21

We have already seen the weekly African Music Roundup embrace World Cup mania whole-heartedly. Now it is time for in-house chef, Melissa De Leòn Douglass to do the same with her weekly Global Food Report. The best place to watch the games in Panama and a devotional risotto tricolore for the Italian team await you.

World soccer, world music, the possibility of secession in the D.R. of Congo, Chinese weapon sales to Nepal, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

Get the blog buzz from East Asia, South Asia, the Americas, Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia & the Caucasus.