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Bongiorni, Roberto
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4 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Jordan wants to pre-empt domino effect
Under pressure from ongoing protests in Jordan, King Abdullah II bin al-Hussein on Tuesday dismissed his Prime Minister Samir Rifai and announced reforms. According to the business paper Il Sole 24 Ore this move is aimed at preventing an uprising like the one in Egypt: "Even if it has yet to be officially acknowledged it's not difficult to guess the reason for this surprising gesture. It is meant to prevent the Egyptian wave of protests from carrying away the Kingdom of Jordan in its wake, which until now has been regarded as an oasis of peace in this rather turbulent region. ... The reforms implemented so far appeared to have fulfilled this purpose, yet things have turned out differently. According to a number of estimates 25 percent of the population lives in poverty, in particular the Palestinian refugees. The second major problem is unemployment, which the government estimates at 15 percent but experts say is far higher. The budget deficit has reached a record high of two billion US dollars as a result of the global financial crisis. And government benefits can no longer keep pace with the rising food prices and energy costs."
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More from the press review on the subject » Economic Policy, » Politics, » Unrest / Riots, » Asia, » Egypt
Isaf troops successful in Afghanistan
According to a UN report presented on Tuesday, 1,271 civilians have been killed in fighting and bomb attacks since the beginning of the year in Afghanistan. That is 25 percent more than in the first half of 2009. The business paper Il Sole 24 Ore still sees the strategy of fighting the rebels as a success: "The number of Afghan civilians accidentally killed in the course of military operations has gone down considerably (by around 30 percent). At the base in Herat, fighting the rebels has been a mantra for some time now. To overcome the Afghans' distrust and win them over to the Nato contingent's cause the number one rule is keeping the number of civilian victims to a minimum. ... Despite innumerable difficulties, the strategy of fighting the rebels is working. Only three years ago almost half of the civilians killed in the conflict were killed by international protection forces. According to the UN report, most of the victims now die as a result of the bombs of the rebels."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Afghanistan
A possible runoff
The Italian business paper Il Sole 24 Ore writes about the extent of the election fraud in Afghanistan: "If the estimates of European observers - who have no binding power - are officially confirmed by the authorities concerned it will mean that up to 25 percent of the votes counted were falsified. Outgoing President Hamid Karzai … who according to European observers was responsible for manipulating of over 1.1 million votes, stands to lose most, while 300,000 would be deducted from his rival Abdullah Abdullah and 100,000 from other candidates. If the suspicions of the European Union … are confirmed there would be a runoff election which the international community regards with growing unease."
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More from the press review on the subject » Elections, » Afghanistan
Time is the enemy in the battle against the opium trade
The battle against the drug trade has become the US government's top priority in Afghanistan, the business daily Il Sole 24 Ore writes, but adds that the outcome remains uncertain: "The hunt for the drug bosses is part of a comprehensive strategy aimed at stabilising the country. But the most dangerous enemy in this battle is time: ten days ahead of the [presidential] elections the Taliban control almost 50 percent of the agricultural areas. … With the revenues from the drug business the Taliban buy weapons and ammunition. The rebellious Helmand province which lies on the border with Pakistan and is a Taliban stronghold covers almost 80 percent of the world's opium production. It won't be easy [to stop this]: 2.5 million people are involved in the business, many of them poor farmers. … The US wants to propose an alternative crop or economic incentives to encourage the people to give up poppy-growing. But all earlier attempts have failed."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » U.S., » Afghanistan
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