In the context of ongoing conciliation between the Cuban government and theRoman Catholic Church, the communications media of the latter are growingquickly on this Caribbean island where the press remains under strict statecontrol.

An exchange programme was launched this week for university students in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, to foster a broader sense of belonging to South America's Mercosur bloc.

Alejandro González left the Catholic Church to join the gay-supportive Metropolitan Community Churches in Mexico, in search of a more open and tolerant place of worship.

As the tabling in Parliament of a proposed law affecting their ancestral land draws near, Malaysia's Orang Asli or‘original people' are gearing up anew for moves to challenge it.

For Karachi-based event manager Shabnam Abdullah, it is a"primaryrepresentation of Pakistan". Quite enamoured with the unique art form, Abdullahhas even used it for a few workshops she arranged for her corporate clients.

In the story"Gente bella"(Beautiful People), the Mexican dictator of the day sends a mission to Europe to import 300 families and thus"whiten the race, to put an end to laziness."Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria cheats him and sends, for the price of gold, gypsies.

Cuban rock 'n' roll, once an underground movement, is being mapped forinclusion in an exhaustive compendium of Latin American rock -- from themusic itself to its transformation into a lifestyle.

Although their human rights are increasingly recognised, blacks in Mexico and Central America are the poorest and most marginalised people in Latin America, according to experts.

Ximena Carrera discovered a new world at the university. After years of expertswho had ruled out the use of hearing aids, she finally tried them -- and her lifecompletely changed. That is what she now hopes will happen for many morehearing-impaired Ecuadoreans.

As Malaysia gears up for what is expected to be a crucialgeneral election in 2011, the government is tightening upagainst widely popular political cartoons and blogs that theruling party fears will translate into voters' support for theopposition.

Despite successful campaigns to promote gender equality, Chinacontinues to struggle with high rates of domestic violence,which experts say impacts not only families but society as awhole.

"Estimated waiting time: 3 hours", read a handwritten signnear the tail of the snaking queue outside the Istana, whichis usually used to receive state guests. Yet thousands ofSingaporeans waited patiently despite the sun beating downmercilessly.

In the rural KwaZulu Natal town of Jozini, Thembeni Madlopha-Mthethwa has been the town's mayor for a decade. And in contrast to the rest of the country, which has experienced numerous civil strikes and service delivery complaints, Jozini has rarely had any such problems.

"We have little boquerón (a type of anchovy), little jurel (scad), little salmon,"recites a server at a restaurant on the coast in Málaga, the southern Spanish cityknown for its"small fried fish."

Anthony, a 22-year-old call centre agent, goes to work at 6p.m. and finishes at around 2 a.m. But instead of going home,he heads to a bar to meet another male agent over beer, and ifthe late night looks promising, they spend more time togetheruntil daytime.