Global Voices Online

Generation Consciente, Une Autre Afrique posts (Fr) a list of French universities, centers, laboratories and other French institutions that specialize in the study of Africa.

“Cameroonian authorities have recently launched a national outreach campaign on the new criminal procedural code,” says (Fr) Fojrega. The code is a hybrid between the procedures of the francophone half of the country and those of the anglophone half, explains the blog.

At AlterPresse, Myriam Merlet predicts (Fr) an upcoming backlash to the thriving Haitian feminist movement. Certain anti-feminists, she says, “know how to take advantage of media (…) to spread arguments about ‘women who beat women' and/or men.”

neweurasia rounds up the state of freedom of the press in Central Asia.

ArmYouth Blog reports on two forum discussions on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and women's role in conflict resolution.

Boli-Nica says not everything was friendly between Evo Morales and Lula da Silva as Latin American leaders met with their UN counterparts in Vienna. Briegel Busch says that Lula's dialogue with Evo Morales was much more firm than was reported by the press (ES). Meanwhile, Jim Shultz compares AP and Reuters coverage of the Vienna meeting and concludes that coverage of Morales' meeting with da Silva is “in the eye of the beholder.” In a comment, however, Eduardo Ávila remarks that “it makes sense that headlines are different because the Saturday morning breakfast meeting added new developments from what was written during the week.”

Sue writes about Georgia's martial history, its penetration into culture, and what it means for the country's future.

JJ's travelogue on biking around Kyrgyzstan's Issyk Kul (”Hot Lake”) continues with a post about an evening in Tamchy and the Tamchy to Balykchi stretch.

Diablo Rojo [ES} is the new weblog of Panamanian chef Melissa De Leòn who won this year's Bloggie for best Latin American Weblog with Cooking Diva. She is also a contributor to Global Voices and has even started a podcast [ES] in which she explains the significance of the “Diablo Rojo” in Panama. Jorge Yau [ES] recently interviewed [ES] Melissa on Blogs Panama.

Jorge Bazo Escudero writes that, according to a new poll by a Chilean university, 57% of Chileans would rather see Alan García win Peru's presidential election [ES}. In a related item, Hugo Passarello Luna says that García's opponent, Ollanta Humala is hoping to find an agreement with Chile about their maritime border [ES].

Brandán adds a few more literary landmarks to Larry Rohter’s travel piece on “Borges’s Buenos Aires” that appeared in this weekend's New York Times.

From Bmore to BA has an informed, albeit not necessarily work-safe post on the paper mill conflict between Argentina and Uruguay and the publicity stunt it inspired. Blogsfera has a video [ES] of the stunt which seems to reveal Tony Blair's appreciation of either the bikini-clad model or what she was protesting.

Alfredo Octavio argues that the U.S. government is only adding to Hugo Chávez's political clout by banning arms sales to Venezuela. Oil Wars has a laugh at the hypocrisy of Washington's claims: “Let's see, Venezuela itself is not involved with terrorism. But it befriends country's that supposedly are - Cuba and Iran. So now its not what you do but what your friends do that matters. If that's the case how does the U.S. avoid decertifying itself?” Daniel Duquenal, meanwhile, says that Chávez is clearly off his rocker when he calls U.S. President Bush “genocidal.”

Sudan Watch reports that Idriss Deby has won the Chadian elections by a large majority however opposition leaders have denounced the elections as a sham.

You've Missed This writes on ex Kenyan President Daniel Moi who he believes is still a major influence in Kenyan politics....”And this time he has the advantage of being able to concentrate on only one agenda, unlike the time when he was president when he had to juggle things “to keep several balls in the air at the same time.” That makes Moi the most dangerous man in Kenyan politics today. Ignore him at your own peril”.

Cry Beloved Zimbabwe discusses reactions to the political situation in Zimbabwe by those living in the Diaspora particuarly in the UK.Exile to many Zimbabweans became an opportunity to enrich ourselves we became more concerned about the exchange rate rather than the socio-political situation in Zimbabwe. Instead of embracing the democratic freedom of our host countries we solerly lacked at home and become more vocal to highlight the plight that Zimbabwe is facing we became more myopic….”

Wicked Angel on one article discussing the difference between stay-at-home and work-outside moms.

Sibyl narrows down on issues in the Indian Family. “At the root of all family trouble are two things: dependence and expectations.”

ICT for Peacebuilding has a post on women, peacebuilding and the image of women in gaming; pointing to some studies - “Ultimately, I think a lot of studies done on the effects of computer game violence simplify the complex matrix of factors and actors that shape our approach to conflict in real life. That women like less violent games don’t necessarily make them inherently better peacebuilders, a proposition as ridiculous as stating that men, given their propensity for violence, are less capable as peacebuilders than women.”

Stacy-Marie Ishmael of the Trinidad and Tobago World Cup Team Blog posts two photos of the winged rhino sculpture, decorated by Trinidadian artist Che Lovelace, that represents T&T in Dortmund, Germany, one of the host cities for the FIFA World Cup next month. The StudioFilmClub blog points out that the “blue devils” painted on the rhino resemble those in Lovelace's recent work.

More ways to fight cyber censorship in Pakistan. A new blog aggregator is started in Pakistan.

Sadiq Alam after buying a book that talks of the parallels between Jesus and Buddha. “As if i could see them standing on top of the hill, and i could feel the deep warmth of their heart with which they were having their arms around each others' shoulders, smiling.”

TOL's Belarus Blog reports that certain EU representatives of Interpol plan to boycott the upcoming meeting in Belarus; Interpol's head rightly disagrees with their position: “‘Why use an apolitical organisation, a meeting of police professionals, to send a political message, when the vehicles they usually have for sending a political message — calling your ambassadors back, closing your embassies, sanctions — are not being sent?' he said.”

Leo Finkel of Maidan International writes about a press conference given by Belarusian political refugees in Kyiv; according to him, the number of Belarusian political asylum seekers will grow in the coming months. TOL's Belarus Blog reports on the false information spread by certain Russian news agencies: according to them, a hundred or so Belarusian opposition members requested political asylum in Kiev a few days ago.

TOL's Belarus Blog writes about Mikhail Vashkevitch, an impostor in the Belarusian opposition's ranks, about to lose his asylum in Bulgaria: “I wish we were back to the times when dissidents wrote books without asking for a $10,000 advance…”

Pestiside.hu writes that Hungary isn't taking part in this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Athens and highlights a few performers from other countries (one is Sandra - who, though Swedish, represents Estonia).

Michael of The Glory of Carniola explains why it pays to stay single in Slovenia.

As Montenegro prepares for a referendum that will decide whether the tiny republic withdraws from federal union with Serbia, a heated discussion is taking place in the comments section at Kosovareport on whether the possible changes are worth it or not.

Giustino of Itching for Eestimaa reviews a book on Estonian resistance to Soviet rule in the war years (War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, by Mart Laar).

Jesse of Bored in Brno writes about the election campaign of the Czech communists.

Our Man in Gdansk writes about how freedom of speech in Poland is sometimes affected by politics: “In the puling adolescent west the new boss of a TV station or newspaper might be expected to trot out some feelgood cliches about how he does not intend to interfere in anyway with editorial decisions made by the journalists under him. One would expect him to pay some lip service to the idea of independent reporting. Poland is an altogether more robust place.”

Kinuk writes about football and the trouble that Polish football hooligans are causing.

Scott W. Clark of Foreign Notes writes about Kyiv's new mayor: “Sometimes the mayor makes a lot of sense and sometimes he sounds crack-brained.”

Tumbleweed in timor lorosae reviews local liquors in East Timor. The same post also has an update of the situation in East Timor.

Vietnam resident and blogger at Antidote to Burnout goes shopping in Bangkok and wonders if Bangkok could serve as a shopping development model for fast growing Vietnam.

Indonesian blogger A. Fatih Syuhud profiles another Indonesian blogger Martin Manurung. “We need many more bloggers like him who has concern on Indonesia's development in socio-cultural as well as in political-economy to blog in English and blog actively”

Christian S. Dunleavy looks at the recent activities of Bermuda's ruling Progressive Labour Party (PLP) and suggests that “the planets are clearly lining up (or being lined up) for an election sooner rather than later.”

The members of The Initiative Against Crime continue to explore the connections between Trinidad and Tobago's crime problem and mistreatment of prisoners. Kahaya is not surprised there was a prisoners' riot at the San Fernando Magistrates Court yesterday, and Jahari Gamba asks, “Does the prison system change criminals or boost their courage to continue these acts?“

It's sea-turtle nesting season in the Caribbean; on Dominica's east coast, The Hand I Fan With's ThandieLand describes the hundreds of people who visit the beach near her village each night, hoping to glimpse the turtles as they emerge from the waves.

Sharh, a photoblog, has published a photo of two dogs and their owners. Blogger says having a dog can create opportunities to get new girl or boy friends in Iran.

EastSouthWestNorth's Roland Soong translates news stories on “what must be the first big internet-fueled political storm in Hong Kong” which comes down to whether or not the Hong Kong Democratic Party has been infiltrated by “spies” and whether or not they come from the Chinese mainland.

Asiapundit's myrick blogs on the fortieth anniversary of the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, photos included.

BJ Gemer at China Rant gives some tips on how to tell if your Chinese money is fake or not.

Cut the commitment doublespeak and call your operations in China for what they really are, says Will at Imagethief, or else live up to the claim:

“Indeed, it seems clear that many companies see the constant, reassuring drone of “commitment to China” messages as something of an insurance policy against China's wide nationalist streak and history of alarming political whimsy. With regard to the government, the feeling may that, if you can't actively seek patronage these days (things have cleaned up), you can at least encourage benevolent non-intervention.”

Tokyoid at Japundit challenges the perception that Tokyo governor Shintaro Ishihara is a major source of Japan's nationalist problem with the claim that the blame lies with Foreign Minister Taro Aso:

“There are those who view Tokyo Governor Ishihara as the embodiment of resurgent Japanese nationalism. They are wrong. Ishihara, for all his buffoon-like outbursts, is the political equivalent of the bitter man sat at the bar, best years behind him, putting the world to rights to anyone unfortunate to be within hearing distance with tirades against whatever group happens to cross his mind at that particular moment…There are those who have sought to downplay the significance of Aso's recent pronouncements on supposed Japanese racial purity, but this story puts those into a completely different shade when you consider his own corporate connections to actual complicity in slavery during war time.”

“Just a day ahead of the 40th anniversary of the start of Mao's mass murdering Cultural Revolution, which plunged China into years of chaos and pitted faction against faction within the ruling Communist Party (and children against their parents), the heirs to that organization announced a plan that is designed to encourage and expose differences among presumed party factions,” writes China Confidential's Confidential Reporter of her previous day's post in which she writes that “the ruling Communist Party announced Monday that it would hold local elections for the first time. An offical described the move as ‘an enormous step.'
“Leading up to the 2007 National People's Congress (NPC) meeting, elections of leaders at provincial, county, city and township levels will be held.”

Friend Gram at Holidarity blogs on the increase of media time given to “Chinese authors that don't much tie in to the images of Chinese out there in the global vernacular” in ‘No Joy Luck Club Crap Here.'

“There is no official commemoration or acknowledgment in the PRC today,” says The Useless Tree blogger of the fortieth anniversary of the beginning of China's Cultural Revolution. “The Party has ordered the media not to discuss it. Just another one of those major chunks of modern history, like the Great Leap Forward, that the Party tries to forget.”

Many GV readers were touched by this picture of New Caledonia-based blogger Sebastien's wedding to Annoella in Mauritius. This week the couple post additional pictures of their big day as well as a best wishes card signed by bloggers from around the world.

AlterPresse posts a photo essay of President Preval's inauguration including shots of pro-Lavalas demonstrators and Preval's signing of the PetroCaribe Agreement right after the ceremony.

Renouveau Congolais announces (Fr) that Debout Pour Le Congo [Stand Up for Congo] is organizing a demonstration today in Liege, Belgium against the “regular explusion [of Congolese] in collaboration with the Congolese government, author of many crimes and ongoing violations of human rights.” The demonstration will also demand that Belgium take a “different look at the Congolese's situation in Belgium in light of the history linking the two peoples.” DPLC also asks that Betu Bernard's asylum petition be granted. Betu Bernard is a UDPS member who was arrested and beaten by Congolese authorities during a demonstration against the prolonging of the transition period last June.

Raed corners Richard Perle over Iraq and his support for “Iranian Chalabis” while out shopping. Perle gave Read his personal contact details and asked for information on any non-violent Iranian groups. If you know anybody, please tell Raed.

Chippla proivdes some essential background and explanations on the Nigerian proposed constitutional amendment to enable Obasanjo to run for a third term.

Politcs ZA comments on Jacob Zuma's reinstatement as Deputy President of the ANC…..That being said why is Zuma the only current person who has “possible presidential contender” tacked on after his name? Zuma obviously hopes to take his populist surge and use it to put pressure on the ANC NEC

Jewels in the Jungle points to a BBC documentary “Africa Open for Business” which will be aired on the 20th May on BBC World

White African uses Google Trends to map some facts on search and news trends in AFrica and arrives at some interesting results.

Weichegud!ET Politics calls on her fellow Ethiopians to “tell the story” of the Ethiopian elections and provides a list of sites supporting Ethiopia Day - 15th May

UnilagFaces comments on Nigeria's premier airport in Lagos and the lack of sanitary facilities.

Sudan Watch reports that the Darfur rebels have been given to the end of May to sign the peace deal

AfroBlog responds to the question put by the BBC “Should Africa look to Latin America”.…For Africa it would be ideal to learn from the experiences of Latin America but realistically newly independent nations in Africa have scarcely learned from the experiences of some of the first independent states in Africa”

Molara Wood publishes an interview with Nigerian author, Sefi Atta who wrote “Everything Good Will Come”.

Steve Ntwiga Mugiri reports on the torching of Kenyan radio station “Hope FM” last Friday

Nigeria Whats New comments on Ethiopia's President, Zenawi who has “has accused Mr Blair of behaving like an old colonial master in cutting off aid in response to the killing by government troops of scores of opposition protesters last year.“

African Migrants on Australia's immigration policy …Migration Act to allow the offshore processing of all asylum seekers who arrive by boat

Controversial Somali/Dutch MP, Ayaan Hirsi Ali is to leave Dutch politics and move to the US to work for a US conservative think tank

Vivir México is a new “metroblog” about Mexico City. Edmundo Hidalgo writes today about the about the opening of the new Vasconcelos library [ES], which will open its doors to the public for the first time tomorrow morning.

Francisco of Caracas Chronicles has used Google's new trend graphs to compare search trends between Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro.

Hugo Chávez's meeting with London's mayor, Ken Livingstone is commanding a lot of attention. It's even turned one blogger into a temporary celebrity.

Fernando Casale says that each and every song from the new album, Microbricolages, of the Mexican band “Album” is available for free download on their website.

Don Ball Carbaja is back blogging, this time with a photo of Peruvian fishermen from the coastal town of Huanchaco where an anthropology student from Utah spent time writing an ethnography, which describes the fishing villages dying culture.

Andrés Duque says that both sides claimed victory in a constitutional court case that challenges Costa Rica's ban on same-sex marriages.

Costa Rican blogger Julia Ardón applauds the risque protests [ES] of an Argentinean model who gained access to an international summit of politicians, then stripped down to a bikini and strutted across stage while holding a sign that read “Enough of the Contaminating Paper Factories. Greenpeace.” According to Ardón, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez blew her a kiss “for having done one of the best things of this summit.”

Jefferson Morley has inspired a slew of varied comments with his summary of the Mexican media's reaction to US President Bush's announcement that he will deploy National Guard troops to fortify the border. Boz argues that “there is a role for the military in our border defense, keeping the bad guys out, and it takes that task seriously. It is not the military's job to prevent illegal immigration. Tonight's speech will be sold as national security, but make no mistake, it's all about politics.” So far there has been little reaction in the Mexican blogosphere.