Global Voices Digest

You’ve probably noticed that over the past few weeks these daily digests have become both longer and more frequent. The swell of compelling new content from new contributing authors based in countries that had previously not been well-represented on the site, is a testament to the hard work of our regional and language editors and their determination to bring light to the regions and voices of the world so often left in the dark by mainstream media. This weekend’s digest continues our coverage on the status of women worldwide with reactions to International Women’s Day still pouring in. We also hear how water guns are facing off against smog in Thailand and how DJs + bloggers = activism in Colombia. I hope you are all enjoying your weekend with the refreshing beverage of your choice and a satisfied realization that it really is a small world after all.

South Asia: Marriage of Convenience, explosion of Hindi blogs, time for a regime change, women in the Middle East

After Thursday’s wonderful look at reactions from the Tamil blogosphere to International Women’s Day, Rezwan pans out for a broader view of South Asian cyberspace. In Bangladesh, a call against marriage of convenience; from Bhutan, probing the country’s civil institutions; an Indian blogger describes the impact from the explosion of Hindi blogs; why the Chief Justice of Pakistan was given the boot; and finally, a report on the state of Sri Lankan women in the Middle East.

Thai Water Festival Brought Forward to Reduce Smog

I don’t know about you, but I’ll take any excuse for a good water fight, especially in the name of environmentalism. Preetam Rai describes a curious proposal by the Thai government to help combat harmful levels of smog in the popular tourist city of Chiang Mai.

South Africa: Blog Awards Mashup: Blogging Is Dead, Where Art Thou Stormhoek?, Conflict Of Interest, and Elite Bloggers

Fears that a top-ten list of North American “alpha-bloggers” would dominate online dialogue worldwide have subsided. But as the blogosphere has both grown and diffused, similar debates are springing up on a local level. Ndesanjo Macha chronicles the storm of controversy circling around the 2007 South African Weblog Awards.

Iranian Women Activists in Pain and Ahmadinejad’s Trip to NY

Following International Women’s Day, a number of Global Voices posts have formed a from-the-bottom report on the status of women worldwide. But perhaps nowhere is the struggle for gender equality both more active and more oppressed than Iran, where 32 women activists were recently arrested during a peaceful demonstration in Tehran. All but two of those women have since been released, including Mahbobeh Hossein Zadeh who described her imprisonment and interrogation on her personal blog.

Bahrain: A better literary life for civil servants?

Bahrain’s second annual “Spring of Culture” took a risky turn toward risque, according to Bahraini blogger Lula, who advises that “creating this controversy isn’t really the wisest thing at this early stage.” Also, in a reversal of roles, a poet gets political and the Civil Service Bureau promises its employees a “better literary life.”

Electronic arts scene mingles with marginalized communities in Colombia

Writes Juliana Parra from Medellín, Colombia: “Take electronic media, a community with a violent history, and music, and you have the necessary ingredients to make a Pixelazo.” But just what is a Pixelazo? Check out Parra’s first-hand account and follow her melodious links to find out.

Questions about the Armenian economy

It’s the economy, stupid. At least that was the central topic of conversation for Armenian bloggers last week as they questioned what factors are behind the market boom and what it could mean for Armenia’s development.

Egypt: Bloggers Arrested in Anti-Government Rally

And this weekend’s digest comes to a close with an unfortunately familiar headline for long-time readers: the arrest of more opposition bloggers in Egypt. This time around, “two bloggers were among more than 20 people arrested for taking part in an anti-government rally called for by opposition movement Kefaya to protest against Constitutional amendments which will allegedly give the ruling party more power.” Amira Al Hussaini’s translations from Arabic give us a first hand account from Egyptial citizen journalists.

Roundups

India’s railway children, cyber-activism in Taiwan, a grand to bare it all, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.