Global Voices Online

Qué Bola posts an atmospheric black-and-white photo taken at The Tropicana, the legendary night spot in Havana, noting that “The Tropicana is probably the one single constant that has existed in Havana from back in the 1940s until the present.”

Cayman Bobby, the Cayman Islands police officer/blogger who was muzzled by his employers back in February, has started blogging again.

The Limey's appeal to the Bermuda government to reveal the cost of the Tourism Minister's stay at a seven-star hotel in Dubai continues to be ignored. “It was an interesting exercise, not for what it revealed about the Minister’s expenses, but for what it revealed about the Government’s attitude to public scrutiny,” says the Limey, who also notes that a 2003 pledge by the government to introduce Public Access to Information legislation has not been acted on.

Semett posts an article announcing (Fr) that the Senegalese government plans to hold the next Festival des Arts Negres [Festival of Negro Arts] in June 2008 instead of June 2007. The Festival was created by then President Leopold Sedar Senghor in 1966.

Barbados Free Press wonders whether Barbados will ban The Lost City, Andy Garcia's film about “Che, Castro and the Cuban Revolution”, which “is effectively being banned in many Central, South American and Caribbean venues.” Says BFP: “Apparently, there are many on the left who would prefer to remember Che and the Castro brothers as “heroic revolutionaries” - rather than men who personally put pistols to the heads of innocent men, women and children in front of their families.”

With one major luxury development project about to break ground and two others in the works, the island of Rum Cay is about to change forever. Larry Smith traces the chequered history of the Bahamian outpost.

According to UDPS Liege, during a May 1 forum organized by UDPS in Belgium, several questions (Fr) sprang from the audience: “What political mistakes has UDPS made that might explain its inability to take power in the Congo in 26 years? Why does Etienne Tshisekedi lead UDPS in a dictatorial manner (…)? Why have so many left UDPS in spite of all the hope the party inspired in the early 1990s?”

neweurasia has a photo essay of Victory Day in Osh.

Notes from Hareinik notes that Armenia has been named a major human rights violator and says Armenian diasporan organizations should pressure the Armenian government on human rights issues.

Luke Distelhorst notes that rising gold prices are good news for Mongolia

Peter reports on Turkmenistan's events in commemoration of Victory Day.

Over at Le Blog du Congolais and in light of what he considers the Western press' derogatory coverage of opposition party UDPS, Tony Katombe asks (Fr): “Now that the high command of the Catholic Church, the country's most influential social force […] is siding with UDPS, is the western press going to demonize Cardinal Etshou and Bishop Monsengwo as the pro-PPRD press has begun doing?”

Katuali (Fr) posts photos of the Caledonian sunset.

Two Belgian citizens are running for deputy positions in the Congo, in violation of Articles 10 and 102 of the Constitution and Article 120 of the Electoral Law, says (Fr) Prince du Fleuve du Congo. Their names are Mboyo Ilombe and Richard Ilunga. According to the blogger, this is evidence that “the CEI [Electoral Council] has always approached candidate files for the next elections lightly.”

Michael of The Glory of Carniola writes about a poetic way of fighting unlawful parking.

Lemuel of Deleted by Tomorrow reports on one local candidate's promise “to do more for the seniors and establish a cemetery.” The candidate happens to run in the blogger's voting district.

p3 writes that some of Poland's preparations for the Pope's visit don't make sense: “This is typical Poland for me. Someone important is coming so let's slap up a coat of paint (apply it thin because it's expensive) and as soon as our guest of honor is gone everything starts to peel. When it's convenient, Poland shows its “faith” and then, when nobody is looking, the sex shops re-open.”

Belgrade Blog posts a report and photos from the “Serbia in Europe” rally that took place May 9.

Vilhelm Konnander shares his analysis of the situation around the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

Leo Finkel writes about Roman Bilyk, a Ukrainian man riding his Jawa motorcycle all the way to India “to promote inter-cultursl understanding.” Right now, he is in Armenia.

What kind of pressure is created by the expectations of an educational institution and peers? Incognito on the recent events where a student committed suicide on the campus of Indian Institure of Technology Kanpur.

Some firms in India have a long way to go before they even begin to be women-friendly. Emma on the outdated beliefs as expressed by a top shot in one of the biggest IT firms in India, with nanopolitan also voicing some concerns.

More ideas on the future of Nepal. Paramendra says “But I think the parliament should only be dissolved two months before the election date. This is to limit possibilities of regression. And this is also to keep the pressure on the Maoists during the peace talks. The sooner the talks can take place and conclude, sooner the election dates are announced, sooner the parliament can be dissolved.”

Where does Sri Lanka stand now? While conflict is not in full swing, the frequent disruptions have put Sri Lanka in a status quo position - with no war and no peace says FocusLanka.

The Japandit blogger notes that following a doubling in price last year of Chinese chopsticks, the Chinese government has now decided to block their export altogether in a move aimed at protecting China's forests.

imperfect world 2006 on a documentary “Tears of Karnaphuli” - “Tanvir eloquently tells the devastating story of dam construction in the area, the displacement of people and the resulting impoverishment of local inhabitants.”

Jeff Barry, who is writing his own novel set in Buenos Aires, mentions the newest work by famed Argentine novelist Tomás Eloy Martínez. “The Tango Singer is about an American graduate student who travels to Buenos Aires to research Borges’ writings on tango.”

After reading a Chinese-language interview with Yale university's Office of Public Affairs, uleewang at Non-violent Resistance questions stories in Chinese media of a prominent Chinese and Yale-educated businessman who claims to have arranged Chinese president Hu Jintao's stop at Yale last month:

“Did they figure a senior official at a state-owned Chinese firm, and who had also worked at numerous respectable foreign and Chinese investment banks, wouldn't lie on such a matter of significant political implications? Or were they simply kissing up in exchange for a favorable tip-off on CNOOC's next big move? For the thousandth time, shame on them. “

In which Flagrant Harbour blogger and Hong Kong resident Michael takes an educational tour to outlying Hong Kong island Tung Ping Chau, gets a geography lesson, a geology lesson too, and finds a new swimming hole.

Gerry Brevers at Korean Language Notes does his own ongoing research into the history of Ulleungdo island, located in the disputed border region between South Korea and Japan.

Tokyo Times‘ Lee blogs photos from an ongoing exhibition which shows the lives of children in Tokyo during the Showa era (1926-1989), “[a]n event that should prove nostalgic to those brought up during the period, and a source of interest to much younger viewers, allowing them a peek into a relatively recent yet radically different world.”

Venezuela's opposition bloggers continue their foray into the mainstream media. Daniel Duquenal (who recently had a letter to the editor published in the Boston Globe) and Guillermo Parra both mention Aleksander Boyd's article in The Times as Chavez prepares his trip to London where he will meet with Mayor Ken Livingstone. Boyd himself, based in London, says the article will have more of an impact than any planned protests could have.

It's a small step in the right direction, says The Korea Liberator blogger Joshua, of a change in South Korea's National Human Rights Commission's tendency to shy away from documenting human rights abuses in North Korea.

Lyn Jeffrey at Virtual China looks at an art studio in South-eastern China's Yunnan province which claims the aim of providing international artists “with the opportunity to experience rural Chinese village life, as an alternative to the intense pressure and marginalized status of the international ‘white box' art circuit” as coblogger Jason Li notes that major Chinese portal site Netease has been hacked, [graphic languge] screenshots provided: “The question (floating around the Chinese web) is, what did they do to provoke this, and who did they do it to?”

Don Ray has posted an informative translation of an email that quotes seismologist Jaime Toral from the Technological University of Panama about recent seismic activity in the Chiriquí region.

The an englishman in osaka blogger has a theory on what inspired a creatively-designed work of art commemorating the Japanese city's 900th birthday: “Initial ideas included ‘a singing carpet' and ‘a piece of string with lollipops attached.' However, after much discussion they settled on ‘a big plastic thing with two faces.'

Scribbles from the Den writes on Africa's entry into the “knowledge business” with reference to Cameroon which he believes has great IT potential except that “However, unlike India, Cameroon is crippled by the “civil service mentality”, and it lacks a crop of creative economic and political visionaries similar to those who transformed Bangalore from a sleepy backwater Indian town into an IT outsourcing and software Mecca.”.

Adefunke on Adefunke comments on the Nigerian consitutional amendment and asks if there is a copy available online for citizens to read and asks “My concerns are about the very bad precedent this will set, a sitting administration amending the constitution without following due process. What will stop some future president appointing his/her favorite dog (four legged animal as opposed to best human friend) as Minister of Finance like Caligula was reported to have done with his favorite stallion?”

Being told that Black South Africans dont read set Lavina Live on a search through South Africa's rich literary history. …”This post is a tribute to the great South African writers of my generation, and generations past, black, white and all in between. This is also a wake-up call to people who come from western countries, judge us by their standards but don't do the research to back up their views of us as some economic, cultural and political backwater.”

Afromusing reports that Nigeria is to start a N10 million (about $78,00) solar power project that will serve 5000 people - a huge saving on traditional power supply.

SudanReeves writes a critical assessment of the recent Dafur agreement (Abuja Peace Agreement) …The Abuja agreement is little more than another request to trust a regime that has never abided by any agreement with any Sudanese party–not one, not ever. And it asks the survivors of genocide to accept the promises of génocidaires rather than providing the meaningful security they so desperately need.”

Florida Governor Jeb Bush will represent the United States at President-Elect Rene Preval's Sunday inauguration, reports (FR) Radio Kiskeya.

The Presses Nationales celebrated 170 years of Haitian literature from May 3 to 6, says (FR) Alterpresse. “34 titles [of poetry, spoken word, fiction and non-fiction] were published or republished.” There were “16 conferences in different parts of Port-au-Prince, talks and readings as well as 8 book signings.” The Presses' director, Willems Edouard said the launch was made possible by local authors, libraries and families.

Marek Bialoglowy in Jakarta is delighted that Google finally updated it's Google Earth and Google Maps service with a high resolution map of Jakarta. The blogger provides links to some of the well known places in the city.

Abtahi, cleric blogger, says in International Tehran Book Fair, he talked with several editors and writers. Blogger writes, it seems previous years psychological books were the best sellers. This year, “how to become successful” books are on the top of the list (Persian).

Kenyan Pundit posts a piece on the Africa session of the recent WeMedia event in London. Wilfred Kiboro was also on the panel and she posts an audio clip of the event.

CyBlug Nigeria publishes an open letter to Obasanjo by Rev. Fr. George Ehusani, Secretary General, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria calling for the President to stop the third term movement immediately.

The Bearded Man reports on Zimbabwe on unemployment and the release of women arrested over the payment of school fees.

Redeem Ethiopia discusses a recent interview with Meles Zenawi on hydroelectric power production investments

The about section of Le Blog de [Moi] (FR) reads: “Friend of yesterday … Lesbian of today. To live one's homosexuality in Martinique on the day to day is possible. The proof: [Me].” Recent posts include a critique of French feminist group 143 Rebels and a lukewarm review of a local restaurant where she recently took Miss B. on a date.