The daily notes "a lack of solidarity of the Flemish 'rich' with the French-speaking Belgian 'poor'. ... The Belgian nation does not exist. Everywhere in Europe's nations, rich and poor regions live together in an unequal, but eventually accepted exchange. ... Hence Italy had to overcome the Northern League's agitation when it was reluctant to pay for the south; rich Catalonia has obtained internal autonomy which it is not far from considering independence. And if the West-Germans from the Lander region have accepted for eighteen years to finance the people in the East, it is for reasons that do not exist in Belgium: an ethnic and linguistic unity, the reconstitution of a big, momentarily amputated country, a large-scale collective project. Instead of this, the Flemish have become obsessed with the arrogance of the French-speakers and the French -speakers obsessed with the selfishness of the Flemish, which does not make a united Belgium." (05/09/2007)

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"The federal system is having difficulty containing the secessionist whims essentially expressed by the Flemish", notes the Spanish daily. "The Flemish are the most prosperous in a country that remains united thanks to the Catholic religion, the monarchy and the fact that Brussels houses the European institutions. Fewer and fewer Flemish people speak French while fewer and fewer French-speaking Belgians speak Flemish. ... [The difficulty forming a government] reflects how difficult it is to maintain a feeling of unity in Belgium. The Flemish, under heavy pressure from the independent movement and far-right, want new reforms in the federal system for more self-governance and for more of a confederation, while the French-speakers are resisting this as they lose out on an economic level, apart from in Brussels, which is a distinct federal entity." (04/09/2007)

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"Dutch-speakers and French-speakers don't talk together enough for Belgium to be called a healthy democracy", explains Professor Philippe Van Parijs in an interview published in the Flemish daily. "This was predictable, and not only over these past three months [of unresolved negotiations]. In despotic countries, different linguistic groups can stay together indefinitely, seeing as the nation is given no say. But as soon as it is a question of democratic institutions, public opinion develops in different languages. This is why political boundaries and linguistic boundaries will coincide for a long time all over the world, as the British philosopher John Stuart Mill explained as early as in 1861. What we are witnessing today is not a specifically Belgian problem. Look at the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia." (05/09/2007)

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"It appears that the final hour of the Belgian State has drawn a little closer", writes Jean-Luc de Meulemeester, professor at the Université Libre de Belgique. "French-speaking Belgians are dreading this moment, especially as, unlike the Flemish, they have no substitute homeland. While the Flemish nation is building itself, the French-speaking nation is still seeking an identity. But it may be that an eventual division of the country could serve a purpose in the adaptation of the Belgian social-economic model to new capitalism (More Anglo-Saxon, less German). Without actually realising it, Belgians are living in one of the last 'Welfare states'. The degree of inequality is relatively small in Belgium and fiscal pressure is high. For some, this would be unbearable in a Europe that has chosen to open up to international competition, facing the rise of China and India." (05/09/2007)

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"Nicolas Sarkozy is a nice guy: he is offering us a golden opportunity to reflect upon a most mysterious phenomenon: the political tremor. ... One cannot deny that he is a mover and shaker stealing the limelight,", notes the columnist Claude Monnier, before continuing with the American example. "When such a pacific shake-up is felt, the political contents of the tremor (concrete measures either taken or envisaged) are of less importance, in a way, than the tremor itself. Look at the American case: after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, George W. Bush, a bit despite himself, shook America right down to its marrow. His concrete policies - notably the war in Iraq - were sinister. Nonetheless, the tremor these sinister policies have imposed on America may help put America back on its feet. ... George W. Bush's successor, if talented and a visionary, will preside over the destiny of an America far more ready to renegotiate its social pact than it has been since the New Deal." (04/09/2007)

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Thirty years ago, Hanns Martin Schleyer, then president of the German Employers' Association, was kidnapped and later murdered by Red Army Faction terrorists. Documentary film maker Andres Veiel ("Black Box BRD") writes: "Anniversaries always carry the risk of lapsing into an endless loop. The Germans watch the same images and show each other the same texts again and again. The symbolic character of the RAF debates which submerge society can only be overcome if two things happen. First, politicians must reduce the level of hysteria by saying: the RAF is history; none of the perpetrators pose a real threat today, but we want to confront this past. This is starting to happen now. Secondly, the RAF terrorists must gather the courage to face up individually to their own actions, crimes and guilt." (05/09/2007)

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Sweden's conservative government plans to introduce a new type of parental benefit in mid-2008. Under the new scheme, parents who stay at home to care for children aged between one and three would receive the equivalent of 320 euros per month. The proposal is highly controversial and the newspaper is against it: "The childcare supplement will only cement existing gender roles: the man furthers his career while the woman covers for him at home. Norway's experiences are very telling: there, 96 percent of childcare benefit recipients are women, primarily immigrants living in ghettoes on city outskirts. Norway is now abandoning its childcare supplement policy. Sweden's family policy is renowned all over the world. Our generous parental insurance and extensive childcare infrastructure enable women to be successful on the job market and attain financial independence. The childcare supplement works in the opposite direction." (05/09/2007)

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The European Ecumenical Assembly has convened for the third time in the Romanian city of Sibiu, attended by 2000 Christians from across Europe. Florian Bichir is delighted: "This is the first time that this assembly takes place in a predominantly orthodox country. It's also the first time that the churches have chosen a theological theme for the dialogue: 'The light of Christ shines on all. Hope of renewal and unity in Europe.' His Eminence Daniel, the Metropolitan of Moldova and Bukovina, proposed this theme, which is an indication that Romanian theology is beginning to make its mark in Europe." Birchir points out that the people of the EU have "discovered the spiritual dimension of the Orthodox Church. This could help Europe to rediscover its Christian roots." (05/09/2007)

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Former Czech President Vaclav Havel has incurred the wrath of Polish politicians by recommending during a visit to Poland that the country's planned elections be monitored by international observers. Havel has now apologised and ascribed the scandalised reaction his proposal triggered in Poland to the country's tense political situation. Political expert Jiří Pehe writes that he can't understand all the fuss in Warsaw: "With its attacks against the media, its intolerance towards minorities and its aggressive nationalism, the current Polish government reminds one of the methods employed by the former Slovak government under Vladimir Meciar. International observers were present when the latter suffered an election defeat in 1998. This was not a disgrace for Slovakia; it was a disgrace for the Meciar regime. Unfortunately, the 'Fourth Republic' in Poland is a disgrace for civilised Europe at present." (05/09/2007)

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The daily criticizes the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) which gathered officials of the 27 EU member states and 16 neighbours at a conference in Brussels on September 3rd. "José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission, called the policy a success. It is not. It is a mix of jumble and evasion. The EU's opening stab at a neighbourhood policy was the Euro-Mediterranean programme created in 1995. This aimed to set up a political and economical partnership ... with 12 Middle-Eastern and North African nations, which, it was made clear, would not be offered membership. This had mixed results. ... With the EU now in a funk about further enlargement; culturally and geographically distant countries from Ukraine to Georgia have been parked in this same policy, rebranded as the ENP. That is not coherent. Countries such as Ukraine need the perspective of eventual membership, however distant, not least as a lever for reform." (05/09/2007)

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Danish police have arrested eight terror suspects in Copenhagen. They are alleged to have close ties to al-Queda. Björn Mansson comments: "It seems that terrorism has established a foothold even in the peaceful north. Even if the planned attacks in Denmark have been foiled, this will have tragic consequences. Xenophobia is already widespread in Denmark, and now it will only gain force. The security regulations that above all affect Muslim immigrants and other 'suspicious-looking' people will become tougher. Could it be that the terrorists know what they're doing even when they fail?" (05/09/2007)

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A new high-speed track linking Paris to London was inaugurated on August 4th, by a Eurostar that was three minutes late. Travel writer Simon Calder comments. "Showing how lamentable Britain's rail network has become is easy; explaining why is much tougher. The primary cause is decades of lack of political belief, from both main parties, that the railways should provide mobility for the masses. As Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher shunned the train on both a personal and political level; John Major presided over a botched privatisation that saw funds diverted from investment to shrewd investors' pockets; and successive Labour transport secretaries have said all the right things in the House about greener travel, while showing no great vision about how to achieve it. Spain, well behind Britain two decades ago and saddled with an antiquated network and a mix of gauges, has ploughed billions of euros into new lines and trains that are so reliable that fares are refunded in the event of a delay of five minutes." (05/09/2007)

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At the film festival in Venice Dominik Kamalzadeh which according to him makes all other films pale in comparison: the Bob Dylan film "I'm Not There" by Todd Haynes. "Haynes, who had already adopted an innovative approach with the 'Velvet Goldmine' pop film, has created an intricate web in which pop, politics and contemporary history are intimately intertwined. In this vibrant Dylan compendium it's not just one actor who achieves the great feat of turning himself into the musician; here you have six characters, each with their own identity... Yet it's thanks to the way Haynes embeds each Dylan identity in a different aesthetic ambience and then merges them with each other that 'I'm Not There' becomes a cinematically challenging tour through an artist's life... Dynamic and underscored by numerous Dylan songs, the film constantly reaches beyond its main character and illustrates how pop images and songs take on a life of their own." (05/09/2007)

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On the occasion of the opening of the seventh International Literature Festival in Berlin, Israeli author David Grossman delivered a speech on the role of literature, which the newspaper reprints. "Literature has no influential representatives in the power centres of this world I have described, and I find it difficult to believe that it has the power to change it. But it can show us alternative ways of living in this world according to an inner rhythm and with an inner continuity that is more in harmony with our natural, spiritual and intellectual needs than that which outer systems are trying to impose on us... A good book makes its reader unique, and sets him apart from the masses. It gives him the opportunity to feel how the contents of his soul, his memories and existential possibilities rise up within him from unknown depths - things that belong to him and him alone." (05/09/2007)

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Last weekend saw long queues of cars waiting to cross the Croatian-Slovenian border as a result of Slovenia's tightened border controls in preparation for its accession to the Schengen area, which is scheduled for the beginning of 2008. Domen Caharijas comments: "Police Minister Dragutin Mate has now immortalised himself in the anthology of modern-day absurdities by unashamedly blaming the Turks for the inexplicably long waiting times at the Oberezje border crossing point... It appears that just four months before Slovenia officially joins the Schengen zone, officials at the country's busiest border crossing point, which lies on the most important transit route through Southeast Europe, are ill-prepared for conducting normal controls. Before 2004, Italian and Austrian border officials also had to contend with hundreds of Turks in car convoys... Don't forget: back then the Slovenians were Turks too, or in other words, non-Europeans." (05/09/2007)

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The paper notes that 5 million olive trees were destroyed in the fires that ravaged Greece this summer. "Greece is the third largest producer of olive oil after Spain and Italy … . But the olive is more than a cash crop to the villagers of this remote and beautiful landscape. Olives are a symbol of security, they have been providing oil for fuel and food for well over 3,500 years, and they are a link in an increasingly urbanised society to the land. ... Now, with land laid to moonscape waste, like scenes from the Somme, the task of regeneration must begin. In one photo from the demonstration last Wednesday, a small young boy, dressed in black was waving an olive branch. In many another time it might symbolise peace, but I hope it meant a realisation that if we want countryside then the young must be involved and take on the guardianship from their grandparents." (05/09/2007)

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