Global Voices Digest

China: EV71 outbreak in China sparks criticisms

While not bird flu related, the recent outbreak of HFMD (Hand Foot and Mouth Disease) in China gives us an opportunity to see how the Chinese government responds to an epidemic. During the weekend china issued a countrywide alert to control the disease as it is also spreading in many other parts of china. Still, one can’t see the end of that trouble that is on rise with every passing day.

Malaysia: Vigil for jailed blogger Raja Petra this evening

Take note of what’s been happening in Malaysia these past few days since popular blogger and political commentator Raja Petra Kamarudin, 58, was imprisoned on Tuesday after a trial which saw him charged with sedition for having written a blog post.
*This post is cross-posted on the Global Voices Advocacy Project*

Brazil and Orkut: made for each other?

Orkut, Google’s experiment on Social Networking Services, is extremely popular in Brazil. More than 53% of Orkut users is Brazilian — even more, if you take into account the Brazilian’s profiles that don’t show their country information and the profiles of Brazilians living abroad — and more than 70% percent of Brazil’s Internet users are actually profiled and active in the network. Daniel Duende takes a look on what are all these Brazilians doing there.

Myanmar: Slow relief work

The death toll continues to rise in Myanmar days after a deadly cyclone hit the country. Dead bodies are dumped in the rivers. Relief is coming from many parts in the world but the Junta is still restricting the movement of foreign aid teams. The situation is worsening as food and medical supplies are still inadequate.

The Global Voices Summit ‘08 site is live!

We’re thrilled to announce the launch of the web site for the Global Voices Citizen Media Summit 2008, taking place in Budapest, Hungary on June 27-28, 2008. Visit the Summit site for background information on the goals of the meeting, our terrific program of events, registration details and information about the charming city of Budapest, and much more.

Lebanon: Strike Gone Sour

May 7 should have been a day for general strike and demonstration to contest the government’s economic policies, price rise and low wages. The workers syndicate had to cancel the demonstration, although keeping the strike on, because clashes broke out in many places around Lebanon between different factions belonging to the pro–government and opposition camps. Bloggers were quick to comment on the events. Here are some of their reflections from yesterday although the events are escalating very fast into gunfights in the streets of Beirut.

Today on Rising Voices: Voces Bolivianas: The day Bolivia was blogging

The Bolivian Voices day on April 19, 2008 was a nationwide effort to train bloggers and bring more people into the global conversation. Approximately 100 Bolivians from ‘underrepresented’ groups took part in a day long workshop in seven cities of Bolivia. Learn more about that day in this week’s feature.

Today on Voices Without Votes: Iran: US Elections from an Iranian Perspective

Iranian bloggers have launched a far-ranging debate about the elections in the United States at the time when such discussions are not seen in mainstream media. Akbar Chanani tunes into the Farsi blogopshere where Iranian bloggers continue to compare between the elections in the US and Iran and discuss their hopes and fears of how the next president in the Oval Office would react towards their country.

Roundups

Get the blog buzz from the world over in the Global Roundups, where today you can find stuck in Beirut, domestic violence in Pakistan, the question of blogging versus journalism, and much much more!