Global Voices Digest

Video of Colombian refugees attacking a family in Chile raises concerns

A cell phone video where a group of people are seen attacking a family with sticks and stones, and leaving most of them unconscious, has been determined to show 10 Colombian refugees attacking a family of Peruvian residents getting home from a party in the town of Iquique in Chile on August 3rd 2008. This video evidence was used by the District Attorney in processing and imprisoning at least two of the Colombian refugees who were later released.

Japan: Debate over Google Street View continues

Less than two weeks after Google rolled out Street View in Japan, debate continues in the blogs over whether the new service is an appropriate match for Japanese culture and urban residential life. A letter addressed to Google written by IT professional Osamu Higuchi drew a huge reaction last week, the translation of which was picked up abroad in both the U.S. and the U.K., in Japan both in English and in Japanese, and eventually even made its way onto Chinese bulletin boards. While many bloggers in Japan supported sentiments expressed in the letter, others responded with criticism.

Maldives: Debate on amended constitution

On 7 August, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, the President of Maldives and Asia’s longest serving ruler ratified the amended constitution of the country. It culminated a process of constitutional amendment that lasted for four years. Maldivians are lucky this time because when Gayoom came to power in 1978 he initiated a constitutional amendment that lasted for 17 years from 1980 to 1997.

Guyana: Hospital Fire

The entire psychiatric ward of the Georgetown Public Hospital was gutted by fire early yesterday morning. Bloggers have been chronicling the story.

Lebanon: The Presidential Visit to Syria

As the Lebanese president Michel Suleiman wraps up his first official visit to Syria, the regional media outlets are dedicating their resources and efforts to broadcast every event, announcement and speculation surrounding the trip. Naturally, the local blogosphere too has been busy reporting news and opinions on the visit and what it holds for the future of Lebanon, writes Nash Suleiman, who takes a closer look at Lebanese blogs in this post.

Lebanon: Tripoli’s Attack – More Online Reactions

Lebanon is back in the headlines after an explosion ripped through a bus in Tripoli, killing 18 people, including soldiers, and injuring tens more. And although the day the explosion happened marked the first visit of the newly elected Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to Syria – a visit which was highly anticipated and monitored by both pro-government and opposition officials – news of the explosion took over the media coverage.

China: Citizen reporter Zuola carted off

Less than an hour ago, prominent Chinese citizen blogger was visited at home by authorities and driven off. Fortunately, he had Twitter on hand and was able to get the word out as he was being detained. *This article is cross-posted on Global Voices Advocacy.

Today on Rising Voices: Nari Jibon: Making a difference

In this post we will experience Bangladesh through the eyes of Nari Jibon bloggers, learn more about some of the people behind Nari Jibon and learn how the project is making a difference with its blogging activities.

Beijing Olympics Coverage

Counting the medals? Thanks to support from Reuters, Global Voices is covering citizen media reactions to the Olympics from citizens in China and around the world on our special coverage page and in our Olympics Twitter feed. The Twitter feed is also being translated to French by Global Voices in French and is published on French website, Rue89.

Roundups

Get the blog buzz from the world over in the Global Roundups, where today you can find violence against the press in the Georgian town of Gori, photos of the rains that have descended upon Lahore, the invasion of Russian holidaymakers to Turkish beach resorts, and much much more!