Stories about South Asia from January, 2013
The ‘Vishwaroopam’ Ban: Attack on Freedom of Speech?
The screening of Kamal Haasan's big budget Bollywood movie Vishwaroopam was banned in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu after Islamic organizations protested the depiction of the Muslim community. Actor-Director Haasan is fighting the matter in court and many have condemned the ban as an attack on freedom of speech.
Pakistan’s Forgotten Hindu Heritage
Shiraz Hassan recently visited dilapidated temples and gurdwaras of Rawalpindi and appeals that these old heritage sites, which depict the secular past of the country, need to be preserved. There...
Why Death for Distributing Polio Vaccine in Pakistan?
Aid workers administering polio vaccination projects across Pakistan are increasingly coming under attack from Islamist militants. While some Pakistanis accuse humanitarian organizations of spying on behalf of the United States, many employees remain determined to stay in the country.
Nepal: Wither Democracy?
Siromani Dhungana at United We Blog! for a Democratic Nepal opines that recent political events strongly suggest that Nepal is on its way to being ruled by an autocratic political...
Bhutan: Security Taken For Granted
According to tourists Bhutan is a safe place. But ShyGuard at Writers Association Of Bhutan warns not to take it for granted. The blogger opines that Bhutanese should be more...
First International Urdu Bloggers Conference
Mehwish Khan at ProPakistani reports that the first international Urdu bloggers conference was held on January 26, 2013 in Lahore, Pakistan. Over 70 Urdu bloggers from different parts of the...
Homosexuals – The Invisible Minority of Bangladesh
The LGBT communities in Bangladesh remain underground as they face discrimination, verbal abuse, physical abuse, social and legal challenges everyday. This invisible minority uses the internet and social networking to communicate between themselves and learn about the psychology and politics of sexual orientation.
Meeting the Mummy at the Museum in Mumbai
Anuradha Shankar at ‘A Wandering Mind’ writes about the ongoing Egyptian Mummy exhibition in Mumbai, India. These mummies started a global tour from the British Museum to educate people across...
Bangladesh: Missed Call – A Tool For Protest?
An intentional missed call is a widely used method in developing countries to save money or mobile minutes. In Bangladesh this is being proposed as a way to protest and reduce the price of mobile internet. A Facebook event of a proposed protest by using "miss call" has gone viral.
India: Penalizing ISPs For Poor Broadband Service
Nikhil Pahwa reports that India’s telecom regulator TRAI has updated its regulations to penalize Indian internet service providers that fail to meet the quality standards.
A Destitute Women And Her Dogs
Jabberwock shares this amazing story about an animal loving old woman living in a small makeshift shanty in Delhi. She has been looking after street dogs for years now, on...
Air Pollution In Bhopal
Bagchiblog sheds light on the rise of air pollution in Bhopal, the capital of the the Indian State of Madhya Pradesh. The degradation in the air quality has primarily been...
Acid Violence: A neglected issue in Bangladesh!
Amader Kotha provides some statistics of Acid violence in the past decade in Bangladesh and points out that despite introduction of tough laws, lack of awareness results in repetitions of...
Police Use Pepper Spray on Bangladesh's Teacher Protesters
For the very first time in Bangladesh, the police used pepper spray to scatter hundreds of teachers and employees of private schools who were demonstrating in Dhaka. One teacher ended up with fatal reactions to the spray and died, sparking intense debate in Bangladesh.
Sri Lanka: Code of Ethics For Media
Freedom Of Expression Sri Lanka reports that the Sri Lankan government has started the process of introducing a comprehensive code of ethics, for both print and electronic media, in accordance...
Turkish President's Letter To Bangladesh Denounced
Last month Turkish President Abdullah Gül sent a letter to the president of Bangladesh requesting for “clemency” of the accused Islamist leaders who are under trial for crimes against humanity during the Liberation War of Bangladesh. There has been a lot of reactions online and offline against the letter and the visit of a Turkish delegation to investigate the trial.
Sri Lanka: Reactions To The Impeachment Of The Chief Justice
Sri Lanka's 43rd and first female Chief Justice Dr. Shirani A Bandaranayake was impeached after she was found guilty of some of the charges the government brought against her by a controversial parliamentary select committee. The impeachment was passed in the parliament after the process was declared illegal and unconstitutional by the highest courts in the country.
PHOTOS: Pakistan's Countrywide Shia Solidarity Protests End Peacefully
After the bombings in Quetta killed more than 100 people of the Hazara Shia community, protests spread like fire across Pakistan. People from all sects and tribes joined hands together to show solidarity with the Hazaras chanting #WeAreAllHazara. Sit-ins were registered in more than 100 cities and towns.
The Outsourcing Revolution In Bangladesh
Asif Anwar suggests that getting more and more people into freelancing & outsourcing industry can make Bangladesh a medium earning country sooner than expected.
Oral History Of The Indian Constitution
Rohit De at ‘Law And Other Things’ informs that journalist, blogger and writer Sidin Vadukut has uploaded a series of podcasts on the oral history of the Indian constitution, beginning...
First Response Services In The Maldives
Maeed points out to the dilapidated state of some of the first response services in Maldives and wonders whether it is effective for donor agencies and financial supporters to invest...
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