Global Voices Online

EBRmx [ES] posts a picture of the recent photo shoot that drew 18,000 nude individuals to Mexico City's main square to participate in Spencer Tunick's work of art. Veronique writes about her firsthand experience in the photo shoot in her blog Que alguien me explique [ES].

Bloggings by Boz links to a recent poll conducted by Semana Magazine and Ipsos, which focused mainly on questions revolving around the paramilitary scandal in Colombia and the relationship with President Alvaro Uribe.

Miguel Centellas, formerly of Ciao!, has started a new blog called Pronto*. In his most recent entry, the political scientist is encouraged by negotiations between the opposition and government party around the autonomy issue, but still stands opposed to a proposal for a runoff election for president. He explains why in his update.

Apunta la Placa Plis [ES] is excited about Art Week in Lima that begins on May 7th. In addition to lectures, art exhibits, and concerts, the best part is that all activities are all free.

IT Buda [ES] links to a recent New York Times article about the substitution of “El Guayacolato” in commonly-found medicines, which led to the deaths of close to 400 Panamanians. The Panama Investor Blog writes that earlier many were concerned that these deaths were caused by a rare virus, but now it is becoming apparent that they are due to this counterfeit ingredient.

The Panama Report describes and provides pictures of the 1000 Polleras Festival that takes place on Calle 50 where “(it) might resemble Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade after sniffing one too many whip cream canisters”

Natalia Antonova posts a wonderful tribute to her grandmother on her 80th birthday: “[…] My grandmother and my grandfather knew the meaning of devotion. When I was learning how to talk, I called my grandmother “Tolechka,” because it was the word that she said most often, the word that was an affectionate diminutive for my grandfather’s name. […]”

etcetera on “home”coming. From New York to Madras. “On my first day back, a houseful of relatives encourage me to go take a ‘nap’ at 5 in the evening. I wake up a little after midnight, and for about 15 seconds, I feel how wild party animals probably feel like all the time. 15 seconds is how long it takes me to answer those vital questions: Whose bed is this? Who’s the other sleeping figure in the room? What country am I in?”

Sunny Days is puzzled by someone who scraps telling her that married women shouldn't be on Orkut. “What could I say? I pointed out that people who wished to stay anonymous really have no place in a networking site. I know a whole bunch of people who use pseudonyms, but they usually identify themselves with a pic, at least in their albums. A networking site is for keeping in touch with your friends, or so I always believed. Maybe make new ones. But I suppose a whole bunch of clowns out there sincerely believe it's a place to find women willing to participate in cybersex.”

Our Dream on the importance of education in Nepal, and what one could do about it. “Most of these children come from families who cannot afford two meals a day, let alone education costs for the child. The parents work in the farm all day or for some other people to earn their living. So, they are unable to send their children to school. Moreover, they expect these kids to help them in their daily household work.”

Me, Myself and Bangladesh explores the links between Islam and nationalism, especially in the context of Bangladesh. “When East Pakistan broke away from the main Western part of the country to form Bangladesh in 1971, it was in opposition to the notion that all Muslim areas of former British India should unite in one state. The Awami League, which led the struggle for independence, grew out of the Bangla language movement, and was based on Bengali nationalism, not religion. At the same time, independent, secular Bangladesh became the only country in the subcontinent with one dominant language group and very few ethnic and religious minorities.”

black and gray in conversation with Sharier Khan, about Bangladesh's first graphic novel. “Being the youngest of four brothers—my elder brothers used to tell me how Hanna-Barbara made cartoons. Upon learning about how different frames created the illusion of a movie, I acquired tissue papers (they seemed so ‘foreign’ back then) and tried to use the tissue paper strips as the animation cell and tried drawing figures on them. Off course that did not work. But I tried, didn’t I?”

KenyaUnlimited has set up a tribute site following the tragic accident of the Kenya Airways Flight KQ507 last week: “In memory of the Kenya Airways Flight KQ507 that crashed in Douala, Cameroon on Saturday, KenyaUnlimited has set up a KQ507 tribute site where you can leave your message of support for the families and friends of all those affected by this tragedy. These messages will be printed and delivered to Kenya Airways at an appropriate time.”

Cowboy Caleb warns readers to stay away from Credit cards. “Teach your children well. Live within your means. Do not apply for more than 1 credit card unless you really have to. Save and invest all your money.”

SaigonNezumi says people in Vietnam are getting interested in Linux.

Ukrainiana writes about Yulia Tymoshenko's recent public statements.

Itching for Eestimaa writes about a recent car trip north of Tartu: “So often I hear people talk about Estonia as if it were only Tallinn. But nothing could be farther from the truth. For a country the size of Denmark or the Netherlands, Estonia seems roomy inside. It's a big little country, if such things exist.”

“Paint me with citronella oil and call me Warrior-Gyal. I going on a hunt!” declares Guyana-Gyal as she and “black flocks” of mosquitoes face off.

Foreign Notes translates parts of an article on the upcoming power struggle in Ukraine.

Darkness at Noon visits Moscow's Victory Park and finds it filled with “boarders, bikers, and skaters.” He writes: “But if the [members of the pro-Kremlin Nashi movement] are indignant enough to demonstrate at the Estonian embassy for days on end, then whey aren't they out at Victory Park guarding the honor of their own war memorial?”

Russian Kafe posts pictures of how St. Petersburg is preparing for Victory Day celebrations.

Estonian blogger Kojinshugi posts “a detailed account of what happened in Tallinn this weekend, how it happened, why it happened, and what it means. […] As much as I’m writing this to get across the true nature of events, I’m also writing it to offer insight into one Estonian mind - mine. The spirit of this, though, will be something that a great deal of Estonians would agree with.” (Four parts: one, two, three, and four.)

“Vive la France!” Babalu Blog celebrates the election of Nicolas Sarkozy to the French Presidency.

Scraps of Moscow translates into English an article by Sergei Kovalyov about Russia's relations with the outside world.

The Japanese government has recently come up with a proposal for introducing so-called “oyagaku”, or parental education, as part of its education al reform program. Japanese MP Hosaka Nobuto criticises this recent movement mainly supported by some conservative groups and argues that the state has no place in the nation's living rooms. [Ja]

Barbados Free Press wonders if the introduction of “intelligent” toilets in Barbados was a smart move.

The Manicou Report, IZATRINI and ttgapers.com are all talking about the latest fallout over rapper Akon's simulated sex dance with a Trinidadian teen - Verizon Wireless has ended its association with the singer.

Jailed blogger Abdel-Monem Mahmoud along with 23 other jailed students from the Institute of Agricultural Engineering threatened to begin a hunger strike on Tuesday May 8 in protest of their harsh detention conditions. According to a hunger strike statement sent today, the detainees claimed that they were subject to sexual harassment by prisoners of common law with whom they're sharing the space.
Lawyer Islam Lotfi, a member of Abdel-Monem's defense panel, said that the “Al Mahkom” prison where Monem is kept “is designated for the most vicious criminals” and that “several cases of TB and HIV have been detected among prisoners.”

“I swear I have to get into back yard planting,” writes Abeni, as the introduction of Value Added Tax sends food prices in St. Vincent and the Grenadines soaring.

Amazing Sudanese guitarists: “Father and daughter. 2 classical guitars. Skill level required to play? Not much at all. Creativity level required to come up with those super unique Sudanese tunes? Pretty damn high I think. I was blown away by this. It took me right back home and I felt at peace listening to it. It’s so simple yet so powerful. It’s so Sudanese.”

The National Electoral Commission in Sierra Leone has announced that elections will be delayed for two weeks. Sweet Sierra Leone hopes that the delay is not a political strategy by the ruling party: “But what does this postponement mean to the political parties. Can two weeks make a difference to a political campaign? i dont think so….It would be helpful to know where the APC party and the PMDC stand on the new election date.
We're all hoping that this is not a tactic by the current regime to delay the process. we'll see what happens from here on out.”

Vincent Maher responds to columnist David Bullard's attack on bloggers: “I hereby dub this Bullardgate. David Bullard launched an attack on bloggers in the Sunday Times today that cannot be allowed to stand. His invective is simply not acceptable from a journalist of the calibre he claims to be.”

Jordanian blogger Naseem Al Tarawneh links to a news article which says that five trucks loaded with chocolate caught fire in the main Courtyard of Amman Customs Department.

Bahrain has opened its arms and offered the Bahraini citizenship to an Islamic preacher. Blogger emoodz isn't happy with the move. “So we evidentially had enough with Singers and Sportsmen, we should halt the naturalization of uneducated underprivileged bedouins from the deserts of Jordan and Syria. It is now officially an “honor” for the country to naturalize radical jihad instigator militant clerics that are kicked out of countries and banned from entering others for accusations relating to their connection to illegal funding of terrorist organization, and other crimes of spreading hatred and racism in addition to very tolerable fanatical Muslim thoughts,” he writes.

Iraqi blogger LadyBird links to a television interview with Zawahri, who invites President Bush to have orange juice with him in the Green Zone in Iraq.

Libyan-Egyptian relations took a new turn over the weekend, with an Egyptian blogger summoned for questioning after writing an article criticising Colonel Muammer Gaddafi. “Eman found herself requested to go to the National State security building in Alexandria for an investigation in the charge of attacking another president by the request presented by the Libyan embassy!! The NSS decided to empty the blog from its content in order to please the angry messes of the Libyans for their beloved leader, after all the Libyan-Egyptian relations don’t need some blogger to destroy it!!,” writes blogger Zeinobia.

“Ambassadors should have to get training to restrain from heaping free praise to regimes that don’t deserve it,” writes Egypt-based blogger Issandr El Amrani, who links to a New York Times article on recent developments in Egypt.

Francis Wade examines the issue of “homosexual hatred” in Jamaica.

Egyptian blogger Ibn Al Dunya links to articles about blogger Sandmonkey, who has announced he was giving up blogging, and Abdulmonem Mahmood, who has been arrested for his blogging activities.

Bahrain-based blogger Bint Battuta has an unpleasant encounter with her landlord. “Once again I feel totally frustrated at the problems I face just because I am a European woman in this society. It only takes a few idiots to make me feel quite overwhelmed, even though I know the majority of people – men – are very decent, and deal with me normally,” she writes.

Bahraini blogger Mahmood Al Yousif announces an amicable end to his feud with a local minister here. “I have met with the minister at his office this afternoon.. in which I have expressed my apology for hurting his feelings by using what could be interpreted as harsh words in my criticism in the original article. I have explained to the minister that those words were probably fueled by an over-reaction to the news report on my part and offered to change them to something more polite. The minister’s lawyer should be present in court on the 8th and officially submit the reconciliation agreement and officially withdraw the case,” he writes.

Jamie from Interlocals.net has written up his visit the Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea. The complex is a result of the Korean government's unification policies. It is also designed to benefit small and mid-sized Korean firms having trouble competing with low wage light manufacturing firms in China and Southeast Asia.

Five students from the Hunan Normal University's School of Literature published the blog post “Factors that influence the psychological sense of safety among Hunan coal mine workers and ways of improvement> on the Xinhua-hosted blog”. They also made an appeal to more than 100 representatives who were attending the two Congresses in Beijing. They action has caught the attention from mainstream media. And ESWN