Languages
Saturday, November 14, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
Culture
GUATEMALA: New Law Recognises Indigenous Languages
A new law in Guatemala, the birthplace of the ancient Mayan civilisation, officially recognises 23 indigenous languages for the first time, and requires that state funds be made available to rescue tongues that are in danger of disappearing.NEPAL: Amid Festivities, Hillary Worries about Future of Everest
A modest man, Edmund Hillary does not particularly like being driven around in a horse carriage amid thousands of cheering people.VIETNAM: Local ‘Johnny English’ Has Copyright in His Sights
'Johnny English', the spy film spoof about a bumbling British secret service agent that has kept audiences rolling in the aisles, is no laughing matter for Le Van Nghia.TRADE-AMERICAS: Culture is Not Negotiable
Many in Latin America argue that cultural products are not just another form of merchandise. But that premise is rarely applied when governments in the region negotiate free trade deals.RIGHTS-INDIA: Resistance to Dowry Jolts Society
In one of her better known verses, the late Indian poetess Madhumita Shukla exhorted Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to ''marry (former Pakistani Prime Minister) Benazir Bhutto and bring back Pakistan as dowry''.IRAQ: Librarian Left Out of Visit to Libraries
A UNESCO team had to leave a senior librarian out of a visit to Iraq this month because U.S. occupying forces denied him a visa.NEPAL: On 50th Year of Conquest of Everest, Villagers Look Back
In the heart of Namche Bazaar, the village that is the unofficial capital of the Everest region, yet another lodge is being built./ARTS WEEKLY/BOOKS-LESOTHO: Author Resurrects the Past
When visiting old mission museums, portraits of the unflinching unsmiling missionaries that once occupied their walls often greet you. Their black and white eyes always seem to be gazing into the distance, focusing on a reality that is gone forever./ARTS WEEKLY/BOOKS-JAMAICA: Literary Festival Blossoms in Surprising Corner
Few people would have thought that an international literary festival could thrive in a small fishing village on Jamaica's south coast. New York-based Jamaican author Colin Channer was one of them./ARTS WEEKLY/ FILM-VENEZUELA: Macbeth Rides the Andes
The film "Sangrador", Shakespeare's Macbeth reincarnate in the Andean landscapes of Venezuela, is launching the national film season after years in which locally-made movies have barely made a showing on the country's big screens./ARTS WEEKLY/ FILM-BRAZIL: Local Heartthrob Goes International
Brazil has a new "international leading man" to compete in foreign film markets, or at the very least to help fight Hollywood's domination of the cinematic markets at home.POLITICS: India in the Grip of Hindu McCarthyism
India is undoubtedly a success story as an electoral democracy. Not many Third World countries can match its record in stabilising democratic structures of governance over half a century.RIGHTS: Real Test of Nepal-Bhutan Accord on Refugees Comes Later
Now that Bhutan and Nepal have agreed on the number of the Bhutanese refugees who can return to their homeland after more than a decade of waiting, the curtain should be coming down on one of the most complex and often forgotten refugee crises in the world.CULTURE: African Leaders Preserve Manuscripts from 14th Century Mali
In almost a year, the most tangible outcome of the African Union is a cultural project to preserve manuscripts from fourteenth century Mali which are vital evidence of early African literacy and scholarship.POLITICS: India, Israel in ‘Anti-terrorism’ Tango
India and Israel, for decades on opposing sides of the fight for Palestinian statehood, are set to become close strategic allies.ECONOMY: Church Groups Launch Global Corporate Code of Conduct
Major church groups from around the world Tuesday launched a global corporate code of conduct that will be used to help determine whether their investment arms should buy or shun shares in corporations working in developing countries./ARTS WEEKLY/CULTURE-MEXICO: Museums Await New ‘Friends’
The nearly 1,000 museums in Mexico are among the best in the world, say experts, but they are suffering the lack of visitors and growing financial troubles - and there are few plans to update their collections./ARTS WEEKLY/BOOKS-VENEZUELA: State Publishing House in Crisis
The Venezuelan government's publishing house, Biblioteca Ayacucho, is passing through the worst moments of its 30-year history, without a director and with no funds to add to the 240 Latin American titles it has published./ARTS WEEKLY/BOOKS-KENYA: The Sacred Seed
Bespectacled 73-year old Rebeka Njau may have shrunk with age, her slow, cautious steps evidence of her body's frailty, but she still burns with more passion and vigour than most women half her age./ARTS WEEKLY/MALAYSIA: ‘Nasi Kandar’ Gives Taste of Integration
It's 4 a.m. in Gelugor, a residential suburb in the northern Malaysian state of Penang. The odd car passes along the main street, shops are shuttered and there is hardly a soul on the streets./ARTS WEEKLY/BRITAIN: A World in Exodus Captured
The spread of the free market has brought prosperity and freedom for some. But for others rapid economic and political changes sweeping the globe today have brought only instability and misery.« Previous Page — Next Page »
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