The Northern Irish daily looks back on Ian Paisley's careeer: "Ian Paisley is a big man but he cast an even bigger shadow over politics for 40 years. His bulk, his rip-roaring oratory and his constant opposition to any changes in the governance or status of Northern Ireland made him a constant thorn in the side of other unionist leaders with more liberal tendencies. He was often derided for his unswerving stance but there is no doubt that he could feel the heartbeat of fundamental unionism. He played on the anxieties of unionists like a virtuoso, articulating their almost primeval fears of sell-out like no other modern day politician. ... When he finally achieved his lifetime ambition to lead the largest unionist party in 2003, he set the stage for the unlikeliest conversion since Paul on the road to Damascus. No other unionist leader could have sold the DUP and Sinn Fein effectively forming a coalition government." (05/03/2008)

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"Is Ian Paisley a product of bad history and troubled times in Northern Ireland or a primary cause and net contributor?" asks the Irish daily. "The debate about the retiring DUP leader's legacy is only just beginning as politicians across these islands weigh the implications of his dramatic resignation statement. In Catholic, nationalist Ireland - as in Protestant, unionist Ulster -it will continue long after Dr Paisley's departure as First Minister in May. No assessment will be complete without regard to the dangerous mix of politics and religion that characterised the Paisley name for so long. Demagogue or ultimate democrat? Man of God or of hate? ... This debate is found at its most acute in the loyalist heartlands where Dr Paisley once reigned supreme as self-appointed defender of Ulster Protestantism against an alleged conspiracy inspired by the Vatican, aided by the ecumenical movement, and executed by the IRA." (06/03/2008)

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"The not entirely voluntary resignation of Northern Ireland's head of government, Ian Paisley, raises interesting questions about the power of individuals to shape historical processes," Martin Alioth writes. "Because Paisley, the contrary spirit who always said no, didn't create the destructive emotions that divided Northern Ireland for almost forty years out of nothing. ... The long duration of this conflict would have been practically unthinkable without this troublemaker in his cassock. It may seem appalling that this man now wants to go down in history as a courageous peacemaker, but as everybody knows, every story is defined by its ending." (06/03/2008)

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Eric Albert, the daily's UK correspondent, does not believe that "Ian Paisley's resignation from his post as co-First-Minister of Northern Ireland will increase tension between Unionists and Republicans. Paradoxically, the man who was the most radical Unionists' flag-waver has now become the best guarantor of long-term power-sharing. ... A worst case scenario is not however inevitable. For one thing, nobody is really thinking about questioning the power-sharing agreement. Furthermore, Peter Robinson, Northern Ireland's current finance minister, is most likely to become Ian Paisley's successor. The man is reputedly pragmatic, and was long-considered the leader of the DUP's moderate wing. But he will nonetheless have to manage to stand up to the hard-liners in his party.” (06/03/2008)

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The American writer Russell Banks, interviewed by Sylvain Bourmeau, analyses the view his compatriots have of the rest of the world. "When I was younger, I never grasped the extent to which America was an imperial power, because I was right in the middle of the Empire. When you're in the middle of the Empire, it is very difficult to understand. You can't see what your own country, your own people, your own culture are doing. But when I left the country and settled in Jamaica during the 1970s, I was able to fully measure how much imperialism had forged the fate of this little country. .. [Americans] are realising how much we are connected, ... . It is slow, but this awareness of the world is developing. It is inevitable, a positive aspect of globalisation, if ever there was one. Americans are being obliged to realise that there is a world beyond its frontiers." (04/03/2008)

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Rik Torfs, professor at the Université catholique de Louvain, considers that the absence of a strong Belgian identity is not a weakness. "The Belgians are relatively mediocre, in such a way that nobody really hates us. Nobody is afraid of us. There is French chauvinism, the ill-concealed English sense of superiority, and with the Germans, you never know. ... But what about the Belgians? They are so innocent that voting for them entails no danger. Thus Belgians often find themselves at the head of scientific organisations or international committees. Nobody is jealous of them. Our identity is above all weak. Our culture is neither Latin, nor Teutonic, Both the French and the Dutch criticise our accent, which lacks purity and bravura. Ambiguity is a strength, a great richness in tomorrow's world. The Belgians have a mixed culture; they are Europe's Barack Obama." (06/03/2008)

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The Verdi public sector union severely disrupted public life in Germany Wednesday, March 5th with a series of strikes. Nina Bovensiepen writes that the extensive support for the strikers is the result of a widespread sense of injustice among the public: "This strike is a strike by proxy. The widespread support for it is also an expression of dissatisfaction with many developments over the past few years. For example the dissatisfaction of millions of average earners, who have constantly been told to forego pay rises and are now seeing the most recent economic upturn pass them by without bringing them any benefits. ... It is also the dissatisfaction of the many losers in this society who have been told for too long that they themselves are to blame for their destiny and are only suffering from a 'perceived injustice'." (06/03/2008)

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On Wednesday, February 5th, a government majority of UK MPS voted against a pro-referendum amendment to the Bill to ratify the Lisbon treaty. The daily is happy with this result. "The Lisbon treaty does not represent a shift in Britain's relationship with the European Union worthy of a referendum, no matter what the die-hard Eurosceptic lobby maintains. And, even if that were the case, in Britain we have a parliamentary system. Our MPs are charged with voting on legislation and treaties. Those who complain loudly that refusing a referendum is a betrayal of democracy confuse democracy with the mere process of holding a public vote. ... Of course, the manner in which the whole affair has been handled has been lamentable. ... Tony Blair's cowardly decision to promise a UK referendum before the last general election to appease the Eurosceptic press ... resulted in Labour MPs going into the last election committed to a referendum on the constitution." (06/03/2008)

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The Muslim principal defendant in Austria's terrorist trial wants to testify, but only if she is allowed to wear a burqa. She is now to be barred from the trial on the grounds that Austria is not a theocracy and the jury must be able to see the facial expressions of the defendant in order to form its judgement. Hans Rauscher expresses concern: "In a trial against terrorists, evidence should be the main factor, not the subjective impressions of the jury. This is too often the case as it is. ... The accused obviously wanted to give testimony, although wearing a burqa. It would have been a different matter if she had wanted to remain silent. But now she won't be able to defend herself in person. It's her own fault? That may be, but the court is also depriving itself of a source of information: what is her world view, to what extent is she dependent on her husband, who is also standing trial? We won't hear it from her. This is bad for her, but also bad for the quest for truth." (05/03/2008)

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Russia cut off gas deliveries to Ukraine for two days, March 3th and 4th, because Kiev had failed to pay earlier deliveries. Petra Procházková finds it significant that this cut in deliveries coincided with Russia's presidential elections. "It's naïve to expect Russia to show something like generosity towards former Soviet republics, even if their economic difficulties are a result of their having been Moscow's slaves in the past. What's more, Russia is using price hikes to punish those who have chosen a Western orientation, NATO and the EU, and are thus pulling away from its sphere of influence. Russia's blow against Ukraine is the first evidence that the Kremlin's foreign policy will continue unaltered after Vladimir Putin's departure." (06/03/2008)

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"Currencies are like languages. The more people use them, the more useful they are", points out Hélène Rey, professor of economics at the University of Princeton. "These days, like the pound sterling in bygone times, the dollar has a privileged place on the international markets. Over 60% of banks' central reserves are in dollars, with roughly 27% in euros and less than 5% in yen. ... The creation of the euro, with a GNP in 2007 of 11, 900 billion for countries within the zone, compared to 13,800 billion dollars in the United States, has perhaps changed matters by allowing the emergence of a credible alternative to the dollar. As in post-war England, the United States are now very much in debt to the rest of the world. And the dollar appears, like the pound sterling of yesteryear, to have entered an unstable zone. Proof can be found in recent records of the euro in relation to the greenback ... But you can't change international currency as if it were shirt." (06/03/2008)

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A Finnish court dismissed charges against the Prime Minister's former girlfriend, who wrote a kiss and tell autobiography about their brief affair. Matti Vanhanen claimed the publishing of the book was a violation of his privacy. The newspaper comments. "Freedom of expression and the protection of privacy are equally important basic rights. Therefore it's difficult to weigh them up against each other - even though the rulings of the European Court of Justice frequently bolster freedom of expression. It's significant that both sides see the Helsinki ruling as confirmation of their position. It's just a pity that it's a case like Ruusunen's book that has been the cause for such a decision in favour of freedom of expression." (06/03/2008)

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The 75-year-old actor, Victor Rebengiuc, is among Romania's most famous film actors who made a name for himself as an unconventional thinker even before the fall of communism. In an interview with Ovidiu Simonca, he recalls the revolutionary days of 1989, when the old political class took over state television: "On December 23th 1989, those who had glorified Ceausescu just an hour ago appeared on the screen and tried to pretend innocence. They talked a load of rubbish, as though they never had anything to do with our fate. My boy said to me back then: 'Father, aren't you going to do something about it?' ... In a live transmission I recited a poem, held up a toilet roll in front of the cameras and said: You should all wipe your mouths after talking so much rubbish. ... Today nothing happens; the entire political class is united. There is no one to vote for because they're all the same. How is it that members of parliament become millionaires within four years, I'd like to know. Where does all this sudden wealth come from?" (06/03/2008)

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"[The French president] Nicolas Sarkozy has practically become a leper in the election campaign [For the municipal elections on March 9th and 16]. The candidates of his party, the UMP, [Union for a Popular Movement], avoid being associated with the image of the president as much as possible, and when they seek the support of an important figure of the party they turn to the prime minister, François Fillon", explains Lluís Uría, Paris correspondent for the daily. "When a Socialist candidate unearths photos of his UMP rival in the company of Nicolas Sarkozy to denigrate him - as has been seen in certain municipalities - something is very wrong. Numerous mayoral candidates are even hiding their party's logo ... . Among them is Laurent Wauquiez, candidate in Puy-en-Velay, in the Haute-Loire department. Not a single reference has been made to the UMP in his campaign blog. This would be an anecdotal detail if Wauquiez weren't the government's spokesman." (06/03/2008)

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In Romania, politician Varujan Pambuccian has proposed that candidates for Members of Parliament should be required to pass IQ and psychological aptitude tests before they receive their mandate, now that they are to be elected directly instead of through ticket votes. Ottó Neumann applauds the initiative but calls for the candidates' honesty to be put to the test, too. "This way we could keep all those for whom personal and lobby interests are more important than representing the people from taking up government posts. True, testing this aspect will be much more difficult than the other two aspects. But I'm convinced that such a selection procedure would be beneficial, not only for Romania. There are other countries in the region where strict measures are the only way to put an end to the corrupt goings-on in politics." (06/03/2008)

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