In The News

SKBRI Not Required by Chinese: Megawati

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja April 15, 2004
Historically, Indonesian laws have reflected a pervasive worry about Chinese influence. It was not until 2000 that then-president Abdurrahman Wahid revoked laws prohibiting the display of Chinese culture and restricting the movement of Chinese-Indonesians. In spite of these changes, Indonesians of Chinese descent often complain that they are asked to produce special identification when applying...

The Trouble with Civilian Casualty Stories

Jefferson Morley April 15, 2004
A controversy is raging between the US military and several Arab news outlets over their coverage of the siege of Fallujah. General John Abizaid, head of the US Central Command, criticized the Qatar-based Al Jazeera for portraying US military action "as purposely targeting civilians." "We absolutely do not do that, and I think everybody knows that," Abizaid said. "They...

China's ‘Big Mamas' in a Quandary

Paul Mooney April 12, 2004
For quite some time now, the Chinese government and its net-surfing citizens have been involved in a series of serious net games. While the government seems bent on restricting the free flow of certain types of information into China that it fears will prove destabilizing – such as Taiwan, the Falun Gong – China's 80 million netizens (net citizens) appear equally determined to keep access to...

Nationalism in Sports

Cho Se-Hyon April 6, 2004
In the US, spectators applaud excellent athletes regardless of national origin or race, according to the author. However, he says, this is not the case in South Korea, where national pride compels spectators to call foreign players "mercenaries" and domestic athletes to hinder their foreign teammates from excelling on the playing field. Not only are such reactions unsportsmanlike, they...

China's Net watchdogs: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Liyuan Lu April 3, 2004
Political dissidence in China has long searched for an appropriate outlet. With the advent of the internet, anger at politicians, foreigners, upper classes, and others has moved online. Sometimes, internet news forums have served as forces for progressive change – political prisoners have been released after online petitions and editorials became widespread. But at other times, the internet has...

74 Illegal Immigrants Held in Surprise Raid in Abu Dhabi

Muawia E. Ibrahim March 24, 2004
The movement of people across countries is very much a fact of modern life. International migration is instrumental in decreasing the distance between different cultures and people. Yet, in the contemporary period of global terrorism and ethno-religious violence, migrants can also be the source of tremendous anxiety. This week in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, immigration squads...

Chin Chin Choo!

Pallavi Aiyar March 18, 2004
Despite producing the largest number of films in the world, India's movie industry has yet to make a dent in the Chinese market. Relations between Beijing and New Delhi have warmed over the past few years, but the benefit of better ties has accrued almost entirely to trade in other products. China's strict quota on imported films, coupled with the strong appeal of American culture to...