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Kuwait: A Week Goes by

Abdullatif AlOmar · 09:51

The Kuwaiti blogosphere has it all this week - from business developments to the opening of a new mall, the death of a bookshop and segregation at Kuwait University.

Q, back at Kuwaitism, talks about the shift of business power and how other businesses around the Gulf region are acting.

“Recently, there has been a new shift in business, from Qatar and Dubai INTO Kuwait. In the past two weeks or so, three major deals have happened to Kuwaiti companies that need to be looked at in that perspective,” he writes.

Speaking of business, a new mall opened in Kuwait and yo_ghurt takes us on a tour of the new The Avenues.

“Yes, Kuwait’s latest shopping mall, The Avenues is open today. A number, though not all, stores are open, as well as some cafes and restaurants - Starbucks (naturally) and Le Pain Quotidien,” explains the blogger.

Sadly not all businesses are growing as Forzaq8 finds out when he goes to look for a dying book store.

“I was in Hawallay and I read the news of Alrubaya’an closing his bookstore and selling every book for 250 fils (around 1 dollar). So I went there, and after a while of driving around and asking I finally find the basement where the books are being sold.
I advice you all to go and try and give these books a new loving home,” he writes.

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Bachelor Degree for President and the MP's Laptop

A. Fatih Syuhud · 05:01

lingua → zht · zhs

In political arena every move becomes political, or considered to be political if it's not in line with certain interest of particular segment of political elites. That's exactly what's happening currently in Indonesian both in politicosphere and blogosphere. A contentious debate over the current plan of DPR (Indonesia's MP) to amend the constitution to make a Bachelor degree a prerequisite for a presidential candidate to be eligible for nomination by any political party has sparked a furore. And that's understandable considering the fact that one of the would-be presidential candidate from PDI-P party, former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, has never finished her bachelor degree.

Terkini believes this move as a means to stop Megawati from the next 2009 general election candidacy. M. Alfian Alfian in his long analysis conclude that a Bachelor degree should not be a requirement for a presidential candidate as it will only create another corrupt practices of another kind: the long line of politicians who want to seek the Degree and some “malicious” universities who are more than willing to accomodate the “market demand” through “special channel and special price.” Qui est votre agrees..

One who agrees with the plan argues that if Bachelor degree becomes a precondition to be a head of district, it's natural that the same rule should be applied to a presidential candidate as well.

Laptop and Indonesian MPs (DPR)

Despite less significant, the issue of DPR (Indonesia's MP)'s plan to buy a laptop for each of DPR's member assumes a bigger interests among Indonesian blogosphere. No less than 160-odd postings has been dedicated talking about this issue.
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Links

Sub-Saharan Africa

Victor Kaonga publishes an article about blogging, Malawians turn to the blogosphere, in the Sunday Times and Nyasa Times, “When a young Mzuzu-based Malawian by the name of Mangaliso Jere died on January 18 this year, the number of non-Malawians who learned of his death probably surpassed that of Malawians who did. The reason being that Mangaliso was a blogger, and reached a worldwide audience with his blog.”

Sub-Saharan Africa

Under the Acacias writes about

Sub-Saharan Africa

Soyapi Mumba discusses

Sub-Saharan Africa

Head Heeb discusses Bemba's broken peace: It seems to be the fate of the Democratic Republic of Congo never to know unbroken peace for long. Last month, peace throughout the country seemed on the verge of happening when the last major militia leader in the troubled Ituri region surrendered his arms and agreed to go into exile. In the past two days, however, heavy fighting returned to the country, this time causing havoc across large sections of the capital city.”

Sub-Saharan Africa

Losing to New Zealand was not hard to take, it was the manner in which Kenya's cricket team lost, writes Mental Acrobatics: “I still think we can beat England with or without their redemption song flowing in their ears. If they bat first and post a huge total, I hope our batsmen come out looking like madmen on a mission! If the rain comes we are screwed, that 148 runs loss has messed up our run average. On the bright side though, winning the World Cricket League Division 1 championship meant we qualified for the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup to be held in South Africa later this year, we’ll be sure to pick up some tricks!”

Sub-Saharan Africa

China does not seek economic and political control of Africa: “IT’S ironic that some Western countries which are former colonial powers have accused China of pushing a “neo-colonialism” policy in its trade with Africa.
The accusations of “China’s neo-colonialism in Africa” simply lack basis in fact,” via Afroshangai blog.

Sub-Saharan Africa

Kenya Cricket reviews Kenya's performance at the Cricket World Cup, “all in all, it was a disappointing performance, but as Steve Tikolo himself acknowledges, the team know they can do better. Do they have a chance of an upset against England? It depends which Kenya turn up on the day. If it is the team that played Canada, I believe we could give anyone trouble. If it the team that played New Zealand, we would struggle against the Associates even. Let's hope the yips are out of the way and it the team play to their potential.”