Latin American and European states could have prevented the death of dissident Orlando Zapata and shown stronger opposition to the Cuban dictatorship, the liberal daily Gazeta Wyborcza admonishes: "The leaders of all those Latin American countries that, merely because of their - historically justified - aversion to the US, haven't condemned the regime in Cuba should take the death of the Cuban to heart. Although they themselves want to live in a democracy they left the Cuban dictatorship in peace because it symbolises the hopeless fight of David against Goliath. This death should also be taken to heart by those European countries and leaders who just shrug their shoulders when the fate of the island is discussed, either because they are anti-American or simply indifferent to the fate of the eleven million Cubans." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Europe, » Latin Amerika, » U.S.
All available articles from » Maciej Stasiński

Orlando Zapata did not receive the amount of attention West Sahara activist Aminatou Haidar was given, Fernanda Câncio laments in the daily Diário de Notícias: "We only know his name because he died. For him there were no petitions. ... Did he deserve less [attention] than Aminatou? Is Cuba not just as cruel as Morocco? ... Zapata was arrested and sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2003 for 'disobedience', 'lack of respect' and 'public disorder'. His 'crimes' say everything about ... an obscene Cuban regime. A regime supported by many people who didn't hesitate to sign the petition for Aminatou's release but didn't know 'enough' about Orlando. ... I know enough about a regime which many people say is 'not so bad'. A regime that is shrouded in a veil of romantic mysticism. ... Cuba is a dictatorship, the Castros are criminals and Zapata was murdered." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Weltanschauung, » Latin Amerika
All available articles from » Fernanda Câncio

The Czech parliament has accused the Cuban regime in Havanna of murdering Cuban dissident Orlando Zapata, and commemorated his memory on Thursday with a minute of silence. The conservative daily Lidové noviny looks back with bitter irony on the unsuccessful attempts by the Czech government to introduce a harder line against the Castro regime: "In 2003 [the year Zapata was incarcerated] Václav Havel unsuccessfully proposed the Cuban dissident Oswaldo Payá for the Nobel Peace Prize. And when Czech dipolmats tried to get the EU to adopt a harder line on Cuba and have Cuban dissidents received at least by European diplomats, it also failed. Let's not be in any doubt. The next Nobel Peace Prize may well go to a Cuban - possibly even Castro." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Weltanschauung, » Czech Republic, » Latin Amerika
All available articles from » Zbyněk Petráček

The Danish newspaper Politiken has re-evaluated its attitude to the cartoon dispute that flared up in 2005, and now publicly regrets having printed the controversial Muhammad cartoons. The move has drawn fierce reactions from politics and the media, but the social-democratic oriented daily insists that it would have been possible to avoid offending Muslims: "During the entire lengthy debate we never stopped saying that much could have been avoided if the government at the time had dealt differently with the crisis and been more open to dialogue and diplomacy. ... It doesn't cost us a thing to recognise that our re-printing of Kurt Westergaard's cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad also offended many Muslims. It was never our intention to offend anyone. ... Of course it is also crucial that Politiken has never limited its own editorial freedom in any way. That will continue to be the case, including as regards cartoons." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Print media, » Denmark, » Global

Contrary to expectations Ukraine's new president Viktor Yanukovych, who is widely regarded as pro-Russian, will travel to Brussels first rather than to Moscow. This is a sign that the country wants to move closer to Europe because it needs the EU's financial support, the Polish daily Polska writes: "Economic interests can be a greater incentive for Ukrainians to draw closer to Europe than appeals to common values and a common legacy. The Ukrainian oligarchs know very well that they and their money are safer if Ukraine becomes more European than if it ties its fate even more to that of Russia. The pro-European lobbyism can be surprisingly effective for the new president in Kiev. In the end, the reason for Ukraine's European course could above all be that beyond our eastern border the normal democratic rules of a constitutional state apply, and that there is a free market there." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Ukraine, » Russia, » Europe

With an eye to Afghanistan US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates has criticised growing antimilitarism in Europe calling it a danger to peace and security. But according to liberal daily NRC Handelsblad Nato itself is to blame for this trend: "The withdrawal movement in Europe is not just an expression of a strong tendency to leave the dirty work to the Americans. It is also a consequence of the confusion that has spread for over seven years about the goals in Afghanistan. ... Nato's stringing together of changing perspectives and goals undermines its right to exist in society. ... First of all the member states must agree on a minimal consensus about the strategy in Afghanistan. Essentially it comes down to Nato being militarily active there to prevent the situation in the region from deteriorating even further. ... Nato should stop beating around the bush and just say what it means." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Europe, » U.S., » Afghanistan

On his visit to Rwanda French President Nicolas Sarkozy has commemorated the victims of the genocide in 1994 and conceded that his country committed grave errors. A significant step in the fragile rapprochement between the two countries, writes the daily The Irish Times: "France has denied responsibility, although Sarkozy has spoken of France's 'weaknesses and errors' in dealing with Rwanda in the mid-1990s. Rwanda's list of grievances is current as well as historical, however, with the question of genocide suspects who are living comfortably in France adding considerable strain to the relationship. ... It is expected that Sarkozy will suggest to his Rwandan counterpart the creation of a commission of historians to look at the tragic events of 1994 and the complex relationship between the two countries." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » France, » Africa
All available articles from » Ruadhán Mac Cormaic

The uncovering of the "Operation Sledgehammer" coup plot in Turkey has made it clear that the Turkish army has lost the power to tumble or control governments it does not like, writes Der Standard: "This is a welcome development that shows that the army is increasingly coming under civilian control, that the judiciary is defending the constitutional state and that Turkey is drawing closer to democratic standards. The reaction of the judiciary to the conspiracy has, however, itself given rise to conspiracy theories. The arrest of the generals has been interpreted as a government witch-hunt against the opposition. The government has indeed managed to gradually decrease the influence of the military. ... This is very good, but at the same time the [ruling] Justice and Development Party restricts the freedoms of citizens with its clientelism and authoritarian tendencies: for example on alcohol or soap operas that represent non-Islamic values." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Turkey
All available articles from » Adelheid Wölfl

Prior to this spring's elections in Hungary the chairman of the conservative opposition party Fidesz, Viktor Orbán, foresees an end to "superfluous value discussions" and dreams in the conservative weekly Nagyítás of something like a one-party system - under his rule: "In Hungary political life has until now been shaped by clear battle lines [conservative - socialist]. ... In this split environment there is not a single common value or goal. Instead a continual struggle rages, also over fundamental questions. ... However this entrenched dualism of our political system seems to be nearing an end, and giving way to a single, central force, thanks to the growing strength of the Right. ... Now there is a real chance that in the next fifteen to twenty years Hungarian politics will not be determined by a social rift marked by endless divisive, petty and needless value debates that only serve to tear society asunder. Instead the longer term holds the prospect of one large governing party [Fidesz], able to articulate the interests of the nation. ... I personally believe we must leave behind us the politics of continual struggle and opt instead for a policy that aims to stabilise power under a constant, stable government." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Hungary
All available articles from » Viktor Orbán

A mafia scandal has rocked Telecom Italia. Two billion euros in mafia money are said to have gone through the books without the management knowing. The liberal Financial Times Deutschland fears repercussions for other business relations: "Anyone who does business with Telecom Italia must fear he may be pulling the mafia on board as well. As far as compliance is concerned, the company is showing the same deep cracks we saw with Siemens in the 2006 bribery affair. Apparently, in Italy too, people systematically looked the other way for years and there was a lack of will to investigate. ... Now that such a national champion has been caught up in money laundering other major Italian companies will have to face the prospect of coming under general suspicion. It's possible that even before this scandal foreign business partners and investors were already figuring the mafia connections into their price structures. The prices are now likely to shoot up." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Corporations, » Economic Policy, » Italy

Swiss Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf wants to lift banking secrecy in Switzerland. But the consequences of such a move would be devastating, writes the weekly Die Weltwoche: "Litigation would increase both for those affected and for the state. An avalanche of court cases would mean a dramatic rise in legal and counselling fees, and the state would have to employ an army of prosecutors and tax investigators. And every conviction would mean a criminal record for those involved. Relatively minor cases would be punished by limited fines, while aggravated cases would receive high fines and prison sentences. ... Particularly threatened are the SMEs [small and medium-sized enterprises] with just a few employees. To avoid committing tax fraud they will have to oblige their employees to record every kilometre they drive and every bite they eat. That means higher internal controls, entailing a needless rise in administration costs." (24/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Switzerland
All available articles from » René Lüchinger

Slovakia threatens to be a flop in the upcoming 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, the president of the country's architect association, Ján Bahna, warns in a commentary for the liberal daily Sme: "We have learned nothing from the past World Expos. From a historical perspective even the presentations of socialist Czechoslovakia were more successful than those of independent Slovakia. We don't feel the need to organise an architecture competition or commission top experts to prepare our presentation, so the intellectual potential of our people remains unexploited. The culture of presenting itself to the world is part of being a new, young state. But we just live our lives - the world doesn't interest us." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Architecture / Cities, » Exhibitions / Museums, » Czech Republic, » Slovakia, » Global
All available articles from » Ján M. Bahna

In many countries of the world cultural and charity foundations have been founded thanks to the legacies of rich people. The daily Eesti Päevaleht wants the same for Estonia: "Naturally a model like that of [German industrialist] Robert Bosch isn't so easy to emulate in Estonia because the outlook is different here. There are no old fortunes and our millionaires are all still living. But there are a few things we could copy. For example there's the new media museum 'Newseum' in the centre of Washington, which was built purely with private funding. Media companies and their owners supplied the funding and to boost the financing money was diverted from the construction of adjacent residential buildings. Such a model would also be conceivable for Tallinn. The city could exert pressure on the developers of particularly valuable plots of land to build something different there too, for example a museum or a cultural institution." (26/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Architecture / Cities, » Exhibitions / Museums, » Cultural Policy, » Social movements, » Demographics, » Estonia
All available articles from » Mikk Salu

Three managers of the Internet company Google have been given six months' suspended sentences after a violent video was published on the company's YouTube website. But the question of who exactly has responsibility for contents on the Internet remains open, writes the daily La Tribune: "It was necessary to attribute responsibility and Google was the obvious choice. But such Internet regulation is questionable. ... It can't be denied that the anonymity of the Internet makes it easier for the dark side of humanity to rear its ugly head. So must the Internet be banned? ... Such reasoning would mean the closure of every Internet site, because no one can immediately verify the hundreds of millions of contents that appear from everywhere and anywhere. Nevertheless a completely laisser-faire attitude would be criminal. The principle has always been that every provider must be able to remove illicit contents immediately once they are drawn to his attention." (25/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Online media, » Corporations, » Italy, » Global
All available articles from » Jean-Baptiste Jacquin