The daily Süddeutsche Zeitung praises the decision of the EU Parliament: "According to the European Parliament's statement of reasons, the prize was awarded to encourage the many anonymous defenders of human rights in China. This is an important statement at a time when China seems to be becoming a sort of pet dictatorship for some German intellectuals and politicians. Time and again we heard in the midst of the heated debate that criticism of China's human rights violations would damage German interests or did not take account of China's growing weight in the world. The EU has therefore sent the right signal at the right time. Even an economically successful China should not violate human rights, is the important message here. People like Hu Jia deserve respect, independently of whether China's GDP is growing." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Germany, » Europe, » China

Coming as it has in the context of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) between the 27 EU nations and 10 Asian states held in Beijing, the Italian daily Corriere della Sera sees the decision to award the [Sakharov] prize to Hu as a provocation for the host. "Human rights were also supposed to be on the agenda ... but everyone looked away, as if they wanted to gloss over the crisis. Awarding the prize to Hu Jia has upset the programme. [This is] Europe's slap in the face for China, particularly since Beijing had already expressed disapproval of the idea of giving the peace prize to the democratic activist. ... However [the Chinese] government spokesperson Liu [Jianchao] is at pains to soothe the tensions ... The global crisis has directed the ASEM's agenda towards addressing the economic situation, and China is pleased that Europe wants to include it in this effort. China prefers summit meetings like that of the [G]20 with [US President George W.] Bush to dealing with human rights issues." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Asia, » Europe
All available articles from » Marco Del Corona

The daily Politiken writes: "By awarding the prize to Hu Jia the EU has emphasised that it is entirely legitimate to criticise the [Chinese] political leadership. This will hopefully remind Beijing of the promise made by the Chinese - and which Hu Jia has pointed to on several occasions - that thanks to the Olympic Games major progress would be made on human rights in China. Unfortunately this has not been the case: There are still countless Chinese in labour camps, every day people are being forced to leave their homes and move elsewhere in the name of modernisation and the death sentence is more common than in any other country in the world. The games did nothing to change all this. By giving the prize to Hu Jia the EU is not only supporting a person in his battle against a brutal system, it is letting the Chinese know that human rights must be taken dead seriously." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Denmark, » China

The conservative daily The Times believes that at the donors' conference for Georgia financial aid should be linked to political reforms: "The aid should not be seen either as a reward for Georgian rashness in sending its troops into South Ossetia in August or as a blanket endorsement of the Government and policies of President [Mikhail] Saakashvili. ... Georgia is manifestly freer than it was in Soviet days. But its new democratic structure is fragile and far from complete. Despite his US legal education, articulate English and admiration for the West, Mr Saakashvili has shown little interest in political pluralism ... and introduced worrying curbs on media freedom. The aid pledged in Brussels should not be unconditional. ... Tbilisi must show the same courage in embracing democracy as it has in resisting Russian tanks. Donors should expect nothing less." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Georgian Republic

In the Czech Republic a debate is smouldering about an extension of the French EU presidency at the expense of the Czech Republic, which is due to take over the presidency in January 2009: "A weak government with reservations towards Europe and what is more the biggest Euro-sceptic [Czech President Klaus] taking shots from Prague Castle." That is how many in Europe view the Czech Republic as it prepares to take over the presidency of the Council of the European Union for the first half of 2009, the business newspaper Hospodářské noviny writes. "Afraid of the Czechs? Of course, political scientists say, adding that Europe currently needs strong leadership. And no-one believes that the Czechs can assume this role. ... Paradoxically, though, the present situation also has advantages for the Czechs. They can already be sure that their presidency will not go unnoticed and will not go down as just a footnote in the history books, as has happened to many countries before them. And above all now they can only turn out to be a pleasant surprise." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » France, » Czech Republic, » Europe
All available articles from » Lucie Tvarůžková

The USA should participate in the EU mission in Kosovo (EUlex). Russia and Serbia are not making this assignment easy, writes the daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung: "Not long ago the head of EUlex, the Frenchman Yves de Kermabon, proclaimed a so-called "relaunch" and announced that the mission should become initially fully operational in early December. ... However, so far there are no visible signs of Russia making any concessions in the Security Council, and Serbia's policy of obstruction is continuing undiminished. On the instructions of Belgrade the Serbs living in Kosovo have not only refused to engage in any kind of cooperation with EUlex - they are also fundamentally challenging the legitimacy of the EU mission. However, since Serbia is striving for EU membership in the medium term, it will not be able to maintain its fundamental opposition in Kosovo for very long without at some point colliding with its strategic goal of accession." (23/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Europe, » U.S., » Kosovo
All available articles from » Peter Winkler

Should Muslim government officials be allowed to invoke Allah when they are sworn into office, thus granting them the same rights as Christians? The weekly Elsevier says the state should remain neutral on this issue: "Dutch politicians are facing a fundamental decision. They can either grant Muslims the same privileges as other believers - believers receive all kinds of subsidies, enjoy greater freedom of expression provided they can point to a holy scripture and are afforded extra legal protection through the ban on blasphemy - or they can treat Muslims in the same way they treat non-believers, with the result that all religious privileges would have to be abolished. This would mean that anyone being sworn into government office would swear a neutral oath, irrespective of their world view. If Dutch society wants to uphold the valuable principle of separation of church and state, the second alternative would be preferable. ... [It] is not the business of the state to provide a platform for professions of faith." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Netherlands
All available articles from » Gerry van der List

In an opinion piece published in Respekt magazine, former Czech President Václav Havel writes about the Kundera affair. Working together with the Prague Institute for the Study of Totalitariansm Respekt magazine had accused the Czech-born writer Milan Kundera, who lives in Paris, of having denounced an agent for the West to the police while he was a student in 1950. Kundera has denied the allegations and called for Respekt to publish an apology on its front cover. Havel writes: "Even if it is true - which I doubt - that Kundera reported a spy to the police, you have to see this in the context of the time. Back then you didn't have to be a passionate communist to do such a thing and believe you were making the world a better place. It was enough that he wasn't sure whether they were setting a trap for him or one of those near him to fall in to. ... My dear young historians, please be careful with your assessments of history. Otherwise you could end up doing more harm than good, like your (communist) predecessors. Milan, you must rise above these things! As you well know, worse things can happen to people than being the subject of calumnious reports in the press." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Literature, » History, » Czech Republic
All available articles from » Václav Havel

Romanian Economics Minister Varujan Vosganian has announced that Romania is currently examining the possibilty of participating in the Russian-Italian gas pipeline project South Stream. South Stream is regarded as a rival to the European pipeline project Nabucco. The newspaper Adevarul speculates about the reasons for Vosganian's announcement. "Our neighbours, the Bulgarians and the Serbs have concluded the deal with Moscow, but things have been delayed. Apparently there are Russian demands that Sofia and Belgrade regard as excessive. ... Vladimir Socor, one of the most important observers of geopolitics in the ex-Soviet territories, has pointed out that Moscow is threatening to change the route of South Stream so that it runs through Romania. Bulgaria and Serbia might be prepared to swallow Moscow's conditions if they were convinced that they would otherwise lose the project to Romania. It is difficult to say whether Romania is intending to join the South Stream project or whether it simply wants to force its Serbian and Bulgarian neighbours in a particular direction in its own interests, but at the same time it is helping to 'bury ' the Nabucco variant." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Energy, » Italy, » Russia, » Romania, » Bulgaria, » Serbia
All available articles from » Ovidiu Nahoi

The conservative politician Jan Rokita calls in the daily Dziennik for the euro to be introduced quickly in Poland because the Polish currency the złoty has fallen in value: "The rapid fall of the złoty has injured our national pride in a sensitive place ... Our national psyche has undergone a complete change: from unlimited faith in the dollar, which unlike the złoty was regarded as 'real money', it has now come to regard this foreign currency with a large degree of contempt. ... we benefited from its weakness to receive cheaper and cheaper credits each year ... The growth in our assets has impressed us ... It felt good to be able to buy the once legendary dollar for just two złoty ... But now the decline of the złoty has for the first time made the crisis tangible for us ... What do I expect from the government?  That ... it devises a plan for Poland to join the European Monetary Union, and presents it to the president with confidence but emphatically." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Poland

Abu Dhabi's Masdar Initiative has invested 120 million euros in shares in the Finnish wind energy company WinWinD. In the daily Helsingin Sanomat, Mari Luomi of the Finnish Institute for International Affairs examines why oil states are showing increased interest in renewable energies. "For WinWinD the deal represents [among other things] ... an opportunity to expand its business to the Middle East. But why would the world's seventh largest oil reserve want to promote renewable energies? For the simple reason that Abu Dhabi can afford it. ... The countries [in the Persian Gulf] have long since realised that the oil business is not a long-term solution for their budgets and that they need to move away from oil dependency. ... Abu Dhabi has now decided to become a pioneer of alternative energy and turn the Middle East into a Silicon Valley for green technologies. ... Climate change is a multi-million-euro business. The growth potential in regions which so far have paid little attention to environmental issues is therefore enormous."    (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Environmental Policy, » Energy, » Economic Policy, » Global
All available articles from » Mari Luomi

The business newspaper Expansion is calling for a change in Spanish immigration policy: "Therefore Spain must break with its insistence on importing cheap human capital, of which it has too much, and instead begin trying to attract highly-qualified workers if it is to keep up in the race that most European countries have already entered and in which our model, the USA, is decades ahead. For this we need a change of mentality in order to adapt our laws to the requirements of the market. This begins with the universities, which need to attract researchers, and with the authorities, which must lower the bureaucratic obstacles to employment at multinational companies if the latter wish to hire foreign managers, technologists and scientists." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Migration, » Economic Policy, » Spain, » Europe

The weekly Die Zeit hails the liberation of art from the economy that it claims the financial crisis has brought. "It may be that the bank crisis will mean the end for one or two cultural projects. Promotional funding that took an indirect route through culture could become scarce. But culture itself, the arts and sciences in the narrower sense, will profit from the crisis. All of a sudden they have been freed from the constrictions of the economy and regained their original elevated status. They need no longer fear that the sticky fingers of party guests from the business sector will sully their naked flesh. ... It is undoubtedly always painful when a book doesn't sell, but at least the tills will no longer be pronounced the yardstick for quality. ... On the contrary, the appeal of the arts and research will be greatly increased by the fact that their qualities cannot be ruined by an economic crisis. Knowledge and beauty are not governed by the same laws as supply and demand: a truth remains true, even if it has no commercial value or cannot even be traded. ... The tide has turned: it is no longer art that must learn from the economy but the economy that must learn from art." (23/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Exhibitions / Museums, » Film, » Fine Arts, » Literature, » Financial Markets, » Europe, » Global
All available articles from » Jens Jessen

According to recent opinion surveys an increasing number of people in Sweden would like to live in neighbourhoods that are separated from the outside world by a fence. 41 percent of young single people expressed interest in "gated communities" modeled on the United States, while only 22 percent of them would like to live in an area characterised by "cultural and ethnic diversity".  "Is this a problem?" the daily Svenska Dagbladet asks. "Yes and no. It is not really surprising that in a multi-cultural society people feel drawn to those who are like them. That has been the case for a long time. The situation becomes problematic, however, when the contradictions between majority and minority culture grow. The combination of a desire for security and a negative attitude to multicultural neighbourhoods shows unfortunately that these contradictions exist here and that many people see the divisions that characterise suburbs and new housing developments in the big cities critically. This trend is worrying and must be addressed - but preferably not with fences." (24/10/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Infrastructure / Travel and Transport, » Sweden, » U.S.