Previous experience leaves little hope that Greece will be able to implement the austerity measures required of it, the liberal daily Tages-Anzeiger writes, surmising that the second rescue package is above all meant to soothe the fears of private creditors. "In view of all the uncertainties, one is led to suspect that with the new rescue plan for Greece the IMF and euro countries are primarily aiming to appease Athens' private creditors. The latter must decide in the next weeks whether to participate in the 'voluntary' credit writedown and exchange their current Greek bonds for new securities with half the value and longer maturities. Such an exchange, and the hoped-for Greek debt relief of 100 billion euros will only have a chance of success if the private creditors are led to believe at least until next month that the crisis-ridden Mediterranean country is now on secure financial footing." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Greece
All available articles from » Robert Mayer
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

The Eurozone finance ministers demanded that Athens provide further guarantees on Thursday evening before they make their decision next Wednesday on whether to give Greece the second instalment of the rescue package. The conservative business paper Naftemporiki asks what goals the EU partners are pursuing with this strategy: "What are they trying to achieve? Is this another strategic manoeuvre ahead of the vote on the austerity agreement in the Greek parliament [on Sunday] aimed at ruling out any possibility of negative behaviour on the part of the Greek parliamentarians? … One thing's for sure, this approach is causing more and more Greeks to turn their backs on the European project and philosophy. … In addition a growing number of Greeks are less and less afraid of the prospect of Greece exiting the Eurozone. … This is evident in the increased determination of a people to take their fate into their own hands if necessary." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Weltanschauung, » Greece, » Europe, » Global
All available articles from » Nikos Frantzis
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

Now that the Greek parties have accepted the austerity requirements the country - like the rest of Europe - must find its way back to the path of growth, affirms the liberal daily Les Echos: "Good, the country has a bit of a respite. Now it must once more learn to breathe, that is to create more wealth to be able to repay more debt. There's no point getting impatient: the process will take at least a decade. And that doesn't just apply to Greece. All of Europe has slowed down for some time to come. ... Of course it is indispensable that all of the European countries return to a sustainable budget trajectory without being at the mercy of investor hiccups. That is the objective of the European 'fiscal compact' adopted officially at the end of January. But this package won't be enough. If Europe sinks deeper into its 'lost decade', the public accounts of its member countries will remain in the deep red." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Economy, » Greece, » Europe
All available articles from » Jean-Marc Vittori
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

Greece's submission will give it a reprieve, but not for long, writes the business paper Hospodárske noviny: "The politicians in Athens had no choice but to fulfil the troika's conditions. Otherwise the country would have faced bankruptcy, which would also plunge the entire Eurozone into a storm. Greece needs the 130 billion package. The costs are enormous: high unemployment, dwindling industrial production, pension and salary cuts, spending cuts, weak economic growth, social unrest, an artificial political stability. In return, some of its debts will be waived and bankruptcy avoided. Once again time has been bought. How much remains unclear. But to judge by the experiences of the last two years it won't be very long." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Greece, » Europe
All available articles from » Ivan Szabó
Who's saying what » Greece in dire straits, » Ways out of the debt crisis

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's campaign support for French President Nicolas Sarkozy - including a joint interview on French television on Monday - has been met with heated criticism from the opposition in both countries. But Merkel's help can only advance the European idea, writes the liberal business paper Financial Times Deutschland: "The good thing about Merkel's intervention in the French election campaign is that by stirring up a direct cross-border conflict of opinion she has made European politics more exciting for voters. By hashing things out in the open she has aroused voters' interest in the future of the EU. … For far too long political leaders - Merkel included - have protected the European construction from wide-ranging controversies. … The subject of what direction the EU is to take in the future is well worth a sincere, open public debate. And not just in the French campaign. The same goes for the Greek and Italian elections, as well as those in Germany in 2013. With interventions from across the EU. Because arguments from abroad now concern everyone." (09/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Elections, » Germany, » France, » Europe

The internationally renowned Spanish judge was barred from office for eleven years by the Supreme Court in Madrid on Thursday. The left-liberal daily El País criticises the judgement according to which Garzón was guilty of authorising illegal recording of the conversations of defence lawyers with their clients: "The eleven-year disbarment for perversion of justice ends the career of a judge who has performed great services to society in the fight against terrorism, drug trafficking and organised crime. … Garzón's conduct can be justified by the fact that he acted to prevent the crimes of a criminal organisation with ample means to disobey the law, including the complicity of well-paid lawyers. But instead the most foolish, absurd and even insulting argument prevailed: Garzón tried to foil the 'defence's strategies' to the point of lowering the 'Spanish penal process to the levels of a totalitarian system'. With this argument the desired effect was achieved: to put Garzón out of the running as a judge." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Justice, » Spain

According to reports in the media, more than 50 people were killed on Thursday in the western Syrian protest stronghold of Homs. The West must decide now whether to arm the rebels, demands the liberal-conservative daily The Times: "The limits of Western rhetoric are now becoming increasingly apparent. A powerful alliance is emerging, led by the Arab League but including the United States, France and the UK. If the calls to help the rebels end even with the provision of arms, a threshold will have been crossed into a conflict. The West will have taken sides. This is a momentous decision and it cannot be taken casually or reactively. It needs a considered plan and it is now past time that the American and French Presidents and the British Prime Minister met the Arab League, at a place of the latter's choosing, to hold a summit on Syria at which they lay out their plans for action." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Syria
Who's saying what » Arabs fight for freedom

The Romanian parliament confirmed the cabinet of Prime Minister Mihai Răzvan Ungureanu on Thursday with the votes of the ruling coalition. The opposition for the most part boycotted the vote, with the Liberals even failing to turn up at all. But the voters don't like such radical gestures, writes Elena Vijulie on the blog portal Voxpublica: "True, people want radical change. But what [the leader of the Liberals] Crin Antonescu has obviously failed to understand is that Romanian politics can only change when the politicians stop doing radical politics or making radical gestures. The people want to go about their work and look after their families in peace. They want a good, predictable future, so they need predictable politicians. … Romanians want their politicians to think before they open their mouths. … This is why the people took to the streets and managed to persuade even the arrogant [ruling party] PDL to begin thinking about what it does." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Elections, » Romania
All available articles from » Elena Vijulie

The qualities of a leader by no means determined by gender, but the world would be a better place with more women in leading positions, US political scientist Joseph Nye observes in the daily Público: "Leaders should be viewed less in terms of heroic command than as encouraging participation throughout an organization, group, country, or network. Questions of appropriate style - when to use hard and soft skills - are equally relevant for men and women, and should not be clouded by traditional gender stereotypes. In some circumstances, men will need to act more 'like women'; in others, women will need to be more 'like men.' The key choices about war and peace in our future will depend not on gender, but on how leaders combine hard- and soft-power skills to produce smart strategies. Both men and women will make those decisions. But [Harvard psychologist Steven] Pinker is probably correct when he notes that the parts of the world that lag in the decline of violence are also the parts that lag in the empowerment of women." (09/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Gender equality, » Politics, » Society, » Global
All available articles from » Joseph S. Nye

The head of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, confirmed on Monday that the ECB will leave the base interest rate at one percent and won't participate in the restructuring of Greece's debts. The ECB is far too passive, complains the business paper Il Sole 24 Ore: "It's clear what the ECB is waiting for: at the end of the month the second cash injection is due, aimed at giving the banking system another boost. But the ECB seems a little too passive in this context. Rather than taking its own steps it simply bows to the circumstances. It hands out money, but only as much as the banks want it to. Moreover the ECB is obliged to adopt a neutral stance regarding individual countries. Yet it allows the market to decide which government bonds and how many to buy in exchange for fresh funds. And with this approach the ECB is conveying the impression that it is failing in its most important task, that of controlling inflation expectations, which is crucial for financial policy. … Draghi has pointed to the uncertainty of the situation on several occasions. But it is still unclear what the ECB intends to do about it. Not only is it not taking the initiative, it doesn't even seem willing to look into the future." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Banks, » Europe
All available articles from » Riccardo Sorrentino
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

The Dutch government has presented a bill in parliament which, if it became law, would allow hospitals to make a profit and pay out dividends. This could reduce the costs of the healthcare system, the liberal daily NRC Handelsblad notes: "Hospitals could earn more money to invest in innovations and offer more effective treatments. … But even if this market is strictly regulated the proposal could have some unintended consequences. Health, like education, is an area where growth in productivity is limited. There will always be treatments that can't be timed to the second. And society won't accept a treatment being broken off simply because it isn't profitable. It's clear that in the end the citizen will foot the bill in the form of higher contributions. But at present there is no other alternative that offers better chances of sinking costs." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Health Policy, » Netherlands

A conference on sexual abuse in Catholic institutions came to an end at the Vatican on Thursday. However the Polish clergy continue to remain silent on the issue, admonishes the liberal daily Gazeta Wyborcza: "What conclusions can we draw for the Polish Church from this unique conference? Above all that both for the public and for the Church it is immoral to sweep cases in which priests have been accused of sexual abuse under the carpet. And that it is equally immoral to delay investigating such cases in the mistaken belief that such behaviour may protect the interests of the establishment in question. Unfortunately the Polish clergy still have a problem understanding this. One example: Józef Michalik, the chairman of the Episcopal Conference, has doggedly defended a priest from Tylawa who was given a two-year suspended sentence for sexually abusing six girls. And who was banned from working as a teacher eight years ago." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Crime, » Poland, » Vatican
All available articles from » Katarzyna Wiśniewska

In Austria, several cases of medical experiments being carried out at children's homes in the 1960s have come to light. According to victims' reports, children living in the institutions were subjected to electroshocks and administered animal medications and malaria pathogens with the aim of preventing violent outbursts, bed-wetting and suppressing sexual urges. The legacy of Nazi medicine and an authoritarian Catholicism made such abuses possible, the left-liberal daily Der Standard explains: "In the 1960s, the doctors who had studied under National Socialism and whose teachers were in some cases sadistic monsters were at the height of their careers. Not just doctors, but also (university) lecturers, kindergarten teachers employed by the state and public officials had internalised this ideology of contempt towards other human beings. … But the 'scientific' Nazi sadism was also combined with the traditionalist Catholic authoritarian mentality. Thomas Bernhard referred to it as the 'Catholic-National-Socialist' upbringing under which he himself suffered. The terrible thing is that a 'strict' upbringing was broadly accepted by society." (10/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Health and Medicine, » Ethics, » Crime, » Austria
All available articles from » Hans Rauscher

At the EU summit on January 31, EU Commission President José Mauel Barroso called on eight EU members, including Lithuania, to take action against youth unemployment. The online edition of the daily Vilniaus diena regrets that it takes pressure from above for Lithuanian politicians to start acting: "Thanks go to EU Commission President Barroso, who cracked the whip and called attention to the major problem of youth unemployment in our country. ... Barroso unwittingly resembles the type of Moscow central committee functionary who used to perform great deeds for the party, socialism or his own clan with no more than a telephone call. And we act every bit the part of Homo Sovieticus, who only works to receive praise from on high. After Barroso pointed out this problem the Lithuanian president immediately convened her minister for labour and social policy. And on Wednesday this minister announced that the relevant institutions would work out proposals for fighting youth unemployment within a week." (09/02/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Labour, » Lithuania, » Europe
All available articles from » Juodeliene, Violeta