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Geudens, Paul
2 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Hate campaign by French-language media
Flemish politicians have filed charges against francophone media in the dispute between Flemish and Walloons. And rightly so, finds the newspaper Gazet van Antwerpen: "Terms like ethnic cleansing, Nazis and Hitler are regularly used to describe Belgium's northern inhabitants. ... Every year between four and six billion euros flow from Flanders to Wallonia. ... All we want in exchange is respect for the linguistic borders and more autonomy for our regions. ... In no other state in the world does one part give so much of its wealth to its neighbour. And nowhere else is the ingratitude greater than here. ... But where does the extremely negative image that the Walloons have of the Flemish come from? A large part of the explanation must be sought in the way the media write about us, talk about us and judge us. ... They spread false information and incite hatred."
» full article (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Print media, » Belgium
The cost of translation in Brussels
The European member of parliament Alexander Stubb presented a report this week on the "expense of interpretation in the European Parliament". For Paul Geudens, this document " shows once again the large sums wasted by the European Union. In 2003, Europe spent a billion euros on translations. ... In itself it is not such a surprise for an institution that counts 20 official languages. Cultural diversity costs money. English, as a European working language would render more efficient the functioning and save money. But do we want it? Manifestly not. In fact, the waste pinned down in the report is not generated so much by multilingualism of the EU as by the nonchalance of civil servants and delegates. Over 25 million euros have been spent for nothing [in 2003] because of useless reservations that lead well-paid translators to spend hours and even days twiddling their thumbs."
» full article (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Europe
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