The Chinese judiciary is not thoroughly looking into the murder motive in the trial against Gu Kailai because doing so could uncover an espionage affair, writes the liberal-conservative business paper Il Sole 24 Ore: "Gu's motive is still unclear. There is talk of money. But there is a second hypothesis: Heywood could have been a spy. ... However in this country that is so full of spooks and suspects, the very idea of espionage is enough to get the complex political apparatus into gear. Because if Heywood was a spy, then Bo is automatically suspected of high treason - a capital sin for every Chinese. Certainly, this would not run counter to the interests of the Politburo, which sacked the populist-Maoist ideologue Bo. But such a suspicion would not fail to implicate the entire political apparatus in the affair, as it would be considered unable to protect itself from infiltration. In that case, silence is considered the better alternative." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Crime, » Justice, » United Kingdom, » China
All available articles from » Francesco Sisci

If the trial against the politician's wife Gu Kailai was meant to show that the rule of law exists in China then it has failed, the conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung comments: "It's entirely possible that Gu Kailai did kill the British businessman Neil Heywood. But a court could have ascertained that perfectly well with a proper hearing of the evidence. However nothing of the sort was allowed to happen. Who knows what unpleasant details this could have brought to light? And as the fate of those in power hangs in the balance, all risk was avoided. Even the report by the official news agency Xinhua at the start of the trial showed unmistakably that the result of the proceedings had been clear from the outset. Everything that the case was supposed to prove was presented as an absolute certainty. As a result the Chinese government did not manage to preserve even the formal appearance of a proper trial." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Human rights, » Justice, » United Kingdom, » China
All available articles from » Peter Sturm

Gu Kailai, the wife of the former top Chinese politician Bo Xilai, has been pronounced guilty in record time by a court in the Chinese city of Hefei - clearly a politically motivated verdict, the daily newspaper Diário de Notícias writes: "The trial in Hefei was over after just seven hours. And this simply because Gu had apparently confessed to poisoning the British businessman Neil Heywood. Gu, who was sometimes referred to as the Chinese Jackie Kennedy before her husband fell into disfavour, is now potentially facing the death penalty. However it's more likely that she will be sentenced to a lengthy stretch in prison to keep her out of the public limelight. This trial, which has turned into a media circus, is already being compared with the trial of the so-called Gang of Four in which the widow of Mao Zedong, along with three other top officials [of the left-wing of the Chinese Communist Party in 1981] were condemned because of their actions during the Cultural Revolution. … All the observers agree: this is above all a political verdict." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » History, » Justice, » Society, » United Kingdom, » China

Almost one year after the fall of Muammar al-Gaddafi, Lybia's National Transitional Council has officially transferred power to the National Congress, the country's first freely-elected parliament. The liberal conservative daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung gives a generally positive assessment of the Transitional Council: "It promised elections, and it held them just a little later than originally planned. It resisted temptations to benefit from its mandate and secure places for its members in parliament. So although it leaves the National Congress with a mountain of unsolved problems, at least it has not also bequeathed it a gang of exhausted and discredited politicians. ... The work of the National Congress will not least be measured by its success in avoiding clientelism and turning the Libyans into citizens who see themselves not as clients of the government but as responsible participants in the state, endowed with rights and obligations." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Elections, » Libya
All available articles from » Anton Christen
Who's saying what » Arabs fight for freedom

In a report published on Monday the European Central Bank warned about the dangers of high yields on government bonds in the Eurozone and signalled its willingness to intervene. The ECB is bluffing, the left-liberal daily La Repubblica complains: "With its monthly report the ECB is more or less openly telling Italy and Spain to apply for help from the bailout fund before it executes its bond purchasing plans. In doing so the ECB is basically tying its assistance to intergovernmental agreements in which it has no say. This approach would have the paradoxical effect of rendering any intervention by the ECB ineffectual. Because the Eurotower [the ECB headquarters] will only take action in an emergency, once the countries are already with their backs to the wall and have lost their credibility on the markets. So it seems the ECB is secretly hoping that the countries in question won't apply for bailouts and that the announcement of its willingness to help will suffice. The ECB is testing the impact of this bluff." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Italy, » Spain
All available articles from » Tito Boeri
Who's saying what » Crisis countries pin their hopes on ECB

In the Monday edition of the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung the leader of Germany's opposition Social Democratic Party, Sigmar Gabriel, voiced support for the idea of introducing Eurozone debt mutualisation in the long term. This hails a change of policy in Berlin, writes the business paper Imerisia, saying that this reorientation will change the mood in Germany and all Europe: "It is now clear that politicians and observers in Germany are increasingly aware that one can no longer wait until the general elections in September 2013 and that the current government must change its course. … One thing is for sure: the national consensus on the European strategy is broken and the opposition is now much closer to the standpoint of Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti than that of the Chancellor. The debate in Germany will influence [other states], but it will also be influenced by the determination of key partners like France and Italy. Incidentally, a look back to the past confirms this virtually inevitable mutual dependence." (09/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Germany, » Europe
All available articles from » Giorgos Kapopoulos
Who's saying what » Greece puts the Eurozone to the test, » The row over debt mutualisation

According to reports in the media on Wednesday the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia last week purchased four more CDs containing data on the Swiss bank accounts of alleged German tax evaders. The liberal-conservative daily Die Presse sees this approach as highly questionable and points out that the Austrian state is also profiting from this practice: "Germany's strategy of paying millions of euros for the stolen data of tax evaders simply goes too far. After all, Berlin is not dealing with idealistic whistle-blowers here. Otherwise what's stopping the suppliers of the data from handing over the CDs to the Ministry of Finance quietly, covertly and above all free of charge? Berlin is dealing with thieves who are being well paid for their 'services'. Austria is also caught up in this situation. As in 2008, the CDs will contain the names of Austrians, too. And as in 2008 Vienna won't (have to) pay a cent to get hold of the data. The Germans are getting their hands dirty and we are benefiting from it. This is morally reprehensible." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Tax Policy, » Germany, » Austria, » Switzerland
All available articles from » Matthias Auer

Columnist Giorgos Tzivas writes in the liberal daily Politis that Cyprus's woes are not due to the crisis but to people's consumer habits and their inability to distinguish between what is needed and what is superfluous: "Crisis, crisis, crisis. This word is used constantly and everywhere to avoid calling a spade a spade. ... With their lack of judgement, it's clear people will see crises everywhere they look - although the only crisis that exists is a crisis of values. We've transformed our economy, our politics and our very lives into a realm entirely devoid of judgement. ... We had no idea what - or how much - we needed. Now we must get a grip on ourselves whether we like it or not. Only by judging correctly can we avoid the black hole of licentiousness, where our brains have always judged according to quantity and not quality." (09/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Weltanschauung, » Cyprus
All available articles from » Giorgos Tzivas
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

Five years after the outbreak of the international financial crisis the politicians still haven't got the situation under control, the conservative daily ABC writes, recalling August 9, 2007, the day the crisis began with the announcement that the French bank BNP Paribas was in trouble: "Hardly anyone, not to say no one, thought back then that the most serious economic crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s was about to begin. … At a political level the crisis has brought down governments of all stripes on both sides of the Atlantic, including the Republicans in the US, Berlusconi in Italy and Zapatero in Spain. That five years on the crisis still hasn't been overcome testifies to the incompetence of most Western governments - who are completely at odds with each other over whether economic stimulus or austerity packages will bring recovery. However some have been more successful than others. The US solved its banking problems at lightning speed and Germany is sticking to its austerity policy despite the recession, while the Spanish Socialists simply denied the crisis." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Economic Policy, » Banks, » Germany, » Spain, » U.S., » Global
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis, » Spain in the banking crisis

The failure of the budget airline OLT Express has sparked a discussion in Poland about the profitability of domestic flights. Cheap flights basically don't pay off in Poland, writes the conservative daily Rzeczpospolita: "Hundreds of thousands of Poles snatched up the tickets for 99 złoty [roughly 24 euros] offered by the insolvent OLT Express. This offer by the high-flyer among the airlines was no doubt fantastic for customers. However the company's quick bankruptcy should now confirm the message that representatives of the sector have been endlessly repeating: budget carriers simply can't get off the ground in Poland. According to expert analyses, a domestic ticket has to cost at least 200 złoty [roughly 50 euros], to be profitable. That is significantly more than the price offered by OLT, and is more or less comparable to railway prices." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Services, » Economy, » Poland
All available articles from » Andrzej Krakowiak

The opposition social democrats (ČSSD) in the Czech Republic on Thursday launched a campaign against a draft law under which property confiscated from churches and religious communities under the communists would be returned. The initiative immediately prompted harsh criticism from Church representatives. In her blog on the news portal idnes.cz, Lea Vojtekova sides with the Church. "The ČSSD's campaign is very demagogic and populistic and appeals to the base instinct of envy. And this in a state that is already among the world's most atheist. The choice of words alone is provocative, claiming that the government wants to 'give away' billions to the churches. Give away? I think it's right to give back what one has stolen. Moreover the restitution would lead to a clear separation between Church and state. This is what the majority of Czechs want. And as for the imputation that the state would be getting into major debt with such a move, it was mostly social democrats who gave the go-ahead for the Czech Republic's participation in the ESM stability mechanism only recently. And that will plunge several generations into debt." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Religion, » Czech Republic
All available articles from » Lea Vojtekova

Recent surveys show that the number of Irish that would describe themselves as religious has declined in the past seven years from 69 to 47 percent. The conservative daily the Irish Independent attributes this trend to the Catholic Church's sexual abuse scandal: "And what has been the response of the Church authorities to this accelerating drift away from organised religion? Sadly, instead of tackling the issues head on, the Vatican seems to believe that there is nothing wrong with the Irish Catholic Church that the re-imposition of old-style centralised discipline won't cure. The Vatican Visitation to the Irish church, the summary of whose findings was published last March, revealed that the church authorities were still in denial over the scale of the crisis facing the Irish church and of their responsibility for that crisis. ... Until this preoccupation with centralised command and control by the Vatican gives way to genuine contrition for the wrongs done to innocent children by Catholic priests and religious, the proportion of Irish people turning their backs on the church will continue to increase." (09/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Ethics, » Ireland, » Vatican

The Swedish armed forces are currently examining whether more soldiers returning from Afghanistan suffer from post-traumatic stress than assumed. The liberal daily Upsala Nya Tidning says the step is long overdue: "That many soldiers don't take up the armed forces' offers of assistance is no excuse for their not taking this responsibility seriously. If a soldier returns with an infected gunshot wound, he is not allowed to go home without being treated. But this is precisely what is happening with many soldiers who are in mental pain or having difficulties adjusting after their deployment in Afghanistan. The armed forces have promised that in future returning soldiers will be more thoroughly and effectively examined. Ten years after Swedish operations began in Afghanistan, this is a tardy awakening." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Crises / War, » Health and Medicine, » Sweden, » Afghanistan

In an interview with the Macedonian newspaper Vecer, Todor Petrov, ex-member of parliament and president of the "World Macedonian Congress", explained that in Bulgaria there is not a Macedonian minority but a Macedonian majority, as all Bulgarians were of Macedonian ancestry. The daily 24 Chasa counters: "Renowned researchers in Skopje also claim that the Vatican was structured according to the ancient Macedonian model. If we follow this logic we will soon enthusiastically conclude that everything in this world that is splendid and valuable comes from Macedonia. Because our neighbours are of the opinion that all Bulgarians are Macedonians, and certainly not the other way round, we should concord with them in the name of peace and love and from now on call ourselves Macedonians. … The problem is that the whole world would laugh at us, just as it is already laughing at the pseudo-historical monstrosities in the centre of Skopje [buildings and monuments in the old style], that expose the inferiority complexes of the Macedonians." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » History, » Bulgaria, » Mazedonien

The TV company Fox International Channels, owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, has purchased the broadcasting rights of the Dutch professional football league Eredivisie, the league announced on Wednesday. A more than dubious partner, the Christian-social daily Trouw writes: "In his company - and under his responsibility - voicemails were tapped [by the tabloid News of the World] , among them that of a murdered girl. The media can't sink much lower than that. Apart from that, his empire is under suspicion of corruption. Must we roll out the red carpet for this man? No. Nevertheless the Dutch clubs belonging to Eredivisie decided in favour of Murdoch. Football fans will have to live with that. But they're more worried about their Sunday evening entertainment [the sports programme on the public broadcaster] than about Murdoch's sullied reputation. ... The summaries of the games must remain freely accessible to everyone. Europe is right to make this demand, in line with the principle that football is a people's sport that must not disappear entirely behind decoders." (10/08/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » Sport, » Media, » Netherlands