Global Voices Online

Sepia Mutiny on the sudden relevance of Paris Hilton. “Meanwhile, you have so-called “enemy combatants,” some of them South Asian, who in many cases don’t get a lawyer or even get to hear the evidence against them. They are simply thrown into a cage. Not only do they not receive a get-out-of-jail-free card for mental illness, they get tortured in a manner meant to hasten mental illness. Even children. I know some of you think it might be unfair of me to compare Hilton to Guantanamo inmates. You are quite correct. The Guantanamo inmates have only allegedly committed a crime. “

iFaqeer introduces a project - ‘Understanding Pakistan'. “Pakistanis often complain that the history of their country–or the history of the region as it relates to them and their country–is often told from either British or Western eyes, or from a point of view that is sympathetic to India, and dwells too much on a hagiography of Gandhi, and even sometimes Nehru, to the detriment of seeing our leaders as anything more than caricatures (as Jinnah was portrayed in the movie “Gandhi”) and the process, or reason of Pakistan coming into existence as being driven by one man's–Mohammad Ali Jinnah's–ambition or stubbornness.”

Sadiq Alam on the Carnival of Islam in the East. “Inspired by Hakim Abdullah's ‘Carnival of Islam in the West' yesterday it came to me that there is a necessity also to have a focus and brain-storming about the status of Islam in East. In recent time islam has grown considerably in the west, mostly due to migration of muslims and also from the significant number of reverts or converts to Islam.”

black and gray on radio in Bangladesh. “Slowly but surely a silent revolution is taking a shape in Bangladesh. Several private radio stations in Dhaka have gone on-air a few years ago, now along with BBC and VOA on FM, stations like Radio Foorti and Radio Today are changing the country's entertainment scene.”

Following the explosion in Nairobi today, Thinkers Room discusses the double edged of personal media: Today has just illustrated the double edged nature of pervasive communication like blogs, email and text messaging. There is no doubt that these platforms are powerful tools for communicating information. There is also no doubt that they are powerful tools for spreading disinformation. The rumours and innuendo that have gotten to me have left me speechless. Some of the accounts have received indicate hundreds dead and the whole block leveled. Blame has been laid at the doors of Al Qaeda, clumsily detonated grenades, Mungiki, time bombs, electronically detonated bombs and mobile phone detonated bombs.

Geoffrey Philp confesses that he had no intention of becoming a Caribbean-American, because he wanted to be known only as a Jamaican writer - but he now realises that Caribbean-Americans “have had a significant role in shaping the conscience of America”.

You can see several photos of Daniel Ortega's trip to Tehran in Kamangir's blog.The President of Nicaragua talked with Iranian leaders and gave a speech in the University of Tehran mentioning “the Sandanista’s revolution took over the power in 1979, the exact year that the Islamic revolution succeeded in Iran. These two are twin revolutions which had and still pursue similar goals, such as justice, freedom, sovereignty, and fighting Imperialism.”

West Indies Cricket Blog quotes Sir Gary Sobers and former England captain Mike Arthurton on the decline of West Indies cricket.

le blog de [moi] writes about the legislative elections in Martinique [Fr], noting that 65% percent of voters stayed home–nearly the same proportion as voted in the French presidential election.   Understandable, [moi] writes, given the mediocrity of the candidates.

Abeni cannot help but recall West Indian poet Paul Keens-Douglas' parody on beauty shows while watching a local beauty pageant: “We learnt from one contestant that global warming is a good thing for any country in the world. Another seemed to not understand the meaning of the word extracurricular.”

Francis Wade shares his thoughts about police corruption in Jamaica: “At a pay rate that is abysmal, how much can be expected? They have dangerous jobs, in one of the most dangerous cities in the world, and they can barely afford to scratch out a basic existence. Their response is that of the underpaid civil servant the world over - desperate and pathetic.”

In Weforchange we read[Fa] that 700 people who demand equal rights for women,in a letter, condemned the violence against women, students and workers. They say tomorrow is the anniversary of Iranian Women Campaign that started two years ago to protest against the Constitution, considering it the root and origin of many discriminatory rules and regulations prevailing in Iran and to ask for reforms.In this letter,writers mentioned that not only women activists are under attack but ordniary women are under pressure for what they are wearing.

“I spent a good number of hours in the country trying to come to terms that this magical western portion of Hispaniola was not living up to all the negative hype too often attached to the greater Haiti.” Adrienne Wilson posts the last in her series of articles about her trip to Haiti.

“Much of local and Caribbean cinema remains inaccessible to the majority of Caribbean people. Somehow they figure that we would rather see failed American sitcoms than our own people on screen.” A Caribbean film has left quite the impression on Eemanee.

“It turns out that the things that we have been taught to regard as fundamental to our own identity here in the Bahamas…are based on a lie. But it's a lie that is alive and well in the Bahamas and in the world.” Nicolette Bethel continues to explore the concept of race.

Corruption-free Anguilla is concerned about the environmental hazards being caused by the island's public garbage dump.

Egyptian blogger Freedom for Egyptians is celebrating her blog's third anniversary. “My baby is turning three years this month. I cannot believe how time has passed so quickly. On June 25, 2005, my baby was born in a good shape. I am an only daughter so is my baby. Elder kids like me are born independent so is my baby. She is not totally fatherless. She has a father who witnessed and “inspired” her birth. Remotely he saw her growing everyday, proud of her. He frequently fed her, though busy moving between places. She was not born within wedlock, but who cares. She does not need papers. I do not find a problem taking her anywhere and cross borders with her,” she explains.

Egyptian blogger Zeinobia writes: “I don't know exactly where we are heading Egypt ,surely we are not heading towards the safe side , no way we are going already in the wrong turn and we seem to be going deep and deep to the bottom faster than ever. Not that only ,I don't know exactly who is ruling Egypt seriously and the one who rules it is working for it or against it. You will ask the same questions just like me if you knew or read the scandal of the Sinai land.The mother of all corruption scandals.”

“By default, a constitutional, absolute monarchy is absolutely fault- free, unless royally decreed otherwise. So, a gentle public service reminder to fellow commoners of this faultfreeocracy: Next time you want to open your mouth to complain about key thing or turn your accusatory finger at key person, you better double lock your facts first. Chances are (at a regal 98.4%) that the fault may lie right at your doorstep (if you have one), or in your indoor wiring, or in your own brain wiring. This doesn’t lock you out of your constitutional right to complain (within agreed low decibels), only cordon you off from unnecessary embarrassment, not to mention a defendant dock at courtly places,” rants Bahraini blogger Manama Republic.

“Ok, the idea is simple, me and some of my friends started to notice how we have a different look on the world, more specific a pessimistic look. I was discussing with one of my pessimistic friends about creating a group to gather us and speak about our different ideas, all in a pessimistic frame, what do you think guys? I believe if we grow in number we can get a good deal with a hit man to take over our mission and finish our bad luck, side benefits from the group :)” is Egyptian Free Soul's idea of beating the blues.

Eternal Remont writes about Bulgaria's baby boom - and “about the only possible topic of conversation in Sofia these days: Bush.” Preparations for the U.S. president's June 11 visit were painstaking: “For two days, Sofia will be under a blockade and everyone gets the day off. The highways will be closed. Buses won’t run. The main road from the airport is lined with American flags and police officers, one every fifty meters. […] All flights from the International Airport are canceled – in or out – while the President is on the ground.”

Our Man in Tirana has lots of posts on the preparation for George W. Bush's June 10 arrival to Albania and on the visit itself. Stepping Stones and All about Albania also write and post the day's pictures.

Bahraini blogger Mahmood Al Yousif, who manages Bahrain Blog Central, has had it with spammers. “I’m sorry to let you know that I have disabled the automatic and instantaneous sign-up and blog creation due to the number of “spam blogs” being created. For the time being, please fill in the contact form or email me directly with the following information so that I can create a blog for you manually, and completely free. Keep in mind however that this service is limited to Bahrain-based individuals,” he notes.

“You never really understand the plight of Jordan until you actually try and make a living here and experience just how quickly your monthly salary disappears.
It’s absolutely terrible. The difficulty of attempting to save anything at all. What’s worse is where it goes. I have absolutely no idea.
I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. I don’t do drugs. I don’t go to places with 10JD entrance fees. I don’t have a family to support or bills to pay (except for gas). Yet by the end of the month…poof…it’s gone,” notes Naseem Tarawneh from Jordan.

The Glory of Carniola shares his impressions of Blogres 2007 conference, and posts another of his Best of the Slobs roundups.

“I hadn't seen Trabilsia, who has the blog Tripoli Ghibli online for a while and was wondering what was up. Finally got hold of her and found out that her son Tarek was in a serious car accident last Friday. He was in ICU for 2 days but is stable now. He's suffered injuries to his arms and they are hoping to take him to Tunis soon. The power of prayer is an amazing thing. Please remember Trabilsia's son in your prayers!” writes Libyan blogger Khadija Teri.

Today, June 11th, 2007, will be the first time that an Algerian blogger is being taken to court for articles posted on his personnel blog. Abdulsalam Baroudi is being sued by Tlemcen’s Director of Religious Affairs, who has accused him of posting defamatory material on his personal blog on February 20, under the title “Al Sistani Appears in Tlemcen“

Tlemcen’s Journalism club is backing Abdulsalam Baroudi, and calling for journalists and reporters to rally for his case and struggle for the protection of Algerian journalists and bloggers.

The Glory of Carniola posts a documentary about Tito (with English subtitles) and reviews the film's main highlights.

Orange Ukraine writes about the problems and successes of Ukraine's economy: “Furthermore, as much progress as has been made, some sectors of the economy are still sadly backwards. The prime example is the grain market, still subject to grossly inefficient government quotas and bureaucratic meddling.”

Olechko re-visits Berestechko, the site of the 1651 historical battle, for the first time since a school trip many years ago.

Greencars writes about the rise in bikes sales in South Africa and the possible positive effect on the environment: “Still, in the face of dwindling car sales, it’s a positive sign that bike sales are on the increase - a motorcycle culture in South Africa will reduce our vehicle-related pollution levels quite substantially.”

Hector Mongi writes about a recent study into agricultural investments in the Sub-Saharan Africa: “[Stephen] Were Omamo and his co-authors are suggesting areas of investment and type of crops that will have a sound comparative advantage for each country in the Region. The research shows that Tanzania has comparative advantage over other SA countries in a variety of livestock and crops production.”

Ainashe disputes the claim by the Somali Prime Minister that Ethiopia is Somali's best friend: “Contrary to what the Prime Minister said, and I must say, with all accounts, Ethiopia has always been, and continues to be Somalia’s worst enemy. Unless one is blind-folded by myopic tribalist agenda, personal greed or irrational self hate, no one need to be a brain-surgeon to understand that Ethiopia is far from being Somalia’s “best friend” as the Prime Minister ignorantly stated.”

Sandra posts photos and writes about Sierra Leonean weddings: “Three of our employees got married in the past 5 weeks. Needless to say we got a good taste of what Sierra Leonean weddings are like….”

Hastings Zidana discusses the implications of the introduction of exotic species in Lake Malawi: “The introduction of exotic fish species to areas where they do not naturally belong is a global problem. Apart from cases of exotic species, there are also many more cases of species transplant within the same watershed, this is the issue which mainly affects most of African and indeed Malawian water ecosystems.”

The Weekly Brunei Resources goes back 500 years in history to recount a legend associated with two islands in Brunei bay.

Moe Moe is asking readers to support US Campaign for Burma's plan to stay locked up for 24 hours, on June 16 or 17, as though you were under house arrest in support of the Aung San Suu Kyi. The ruling junta in Myanmar recently extended the pro-democracy leader's house arrest. “I applaud the US campaign for Burma for organizing this. It feels good to be able to do something/take action for the good of Burma as often, I feel rather helpless about it.”

A Malaysian minister is proposing that Malaysian students attending religious schools in Egypt master Arabic language. The minister hopes that they will be able to serve the tourism industry in Malaysia. Malaysia has seen number of Arab tourists increase in recent years. MarinaM does not like this idea. “Nor do I think that Arab tourists will necessarily welcome religious scholars as their guides on their Malaysian holiday. Why not organise Arabic classes for all the unemployed graduates, regardless of race or religion, so they may all have an opportunity to join the tourism business?”

The Lost Boy has pictures from the latest pro-democracy protest in Bangkok. “Several thousand people had once again gathered, many standing around drinking from cans of beer or else sitting on plastic sheets sold be vendors, for the latest in a series of daily protests by an assortment of groups keen to trumpet the virtues of democracy.”

Borin discusses some of the scenarios if the claims that Cambodia has huge oil reserves comes true. “Now let’s assume that Cambodia has large oil deposit that we call sell it all over the world, what happen next? Here’s what I think:“

Japan and Russia are the only G-8 member countries where personal possession of child pornography is not a crime. JP reports on the debate on the suggestion of criminalization of child porn possession.

ESWN translated an indepth report from Southern Weekend on the teacher abuse youtube video scandal at Haidian district Art Vocational School.

Four-letter words flooded Chinese blogsphere this weekend as the Great Fire Wall has filtered flickr.com.

Keso said that he could only expressed his anger by one single word: F__K! (zh)

Kenengba points out the government is making ordinary citizen angry (zh).

Chong from interlocals translated an article from Yazhou Zhoukan about the background of the notorious Taiwanese tycoon operating behind the Xiamen PX project. Earlier in June, Xiamen citizens demonstrated against the construction of the chemical factory campus.

Peijin Chen summaries reports on the recent student riot in Zhengzhou: After a seven hour stand-off the streets were cleared; five students were detained, the injured girl is receiving treatment at a local hospital and six city inspectors were investigated and will receive punishment for actions relating to the incident.

Onemanbandwidth introduces a new project called dreamblogue: Our dream is to travel in 2007 to every mainland province in China. During this journey, it is our intention to chronicle the everyday lives of ordinary Chinese citizens.

Li yinhe blogs about the death of Juan Zi, a lesbian who committed suicide because her mother locked her up for six months upon finding out her sexual orientation.

Lyn Jeffery from Virtual China blogs on a missing person net, the categories are: Left on Own Accord; Reasons Unknown; Cheated or Kidnapped (all children); Lost Way (quite a few older people); Lost Touch With Friends and Family; Orphan Looking for Relatives and Urban Vagrants.

It was a bit of a disappointment for current Buenos Aires mayor Jorge Telerman to see his choice to succeed him, Daniel Filmus, who came up short in the first round of elections. However, Telerman reiterates that he will continue to write on his blog through the end of his term in December [ES]. “From here on out, I am going to continue to use this fabulous means of communication to tell how the last weeks have gone and to explain the reasons why we made agreements with different sectors. We will also explain about different aspects of politics; the good and the bad of it all.”

Some might wonder why Hondurans are referred to as “Catrachos.” La Gringa did some investigating and found an interesting wikipedia article about Florencio Xatruch, who led Honduran troops against William Walker in the mid-1800s and, “When referring to the Honduran troops, the Nicaraguan people would say, “here come the xatruches,” which later became catruches, and finally became catrachos.”