Facing the Burma crisis, "European consternation is dramatic", according to Philippe Paquet in his editorial. "The EU is paying the price for its 'engagement policy', which was supposed to make the Burmese generals more amiable. The generals' refusal to dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi or even give him residency status should have opened the eyes of Europeans a long time ago. There is thus something pathetic about this appeal to China asking it to exercise pressure on the junta. As is if a non-democratic country could exhort another to change its governmental methods! ... The rare tool Europeans have is the ASEAN - Association of Southeast Asia Nations - which, by accepting to be joined by Burma in 1997 jeopardized the quality of its relations with the EU." (28/09/2007)

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The newspaper calls for further EU sanctions against the military regime in Burma: "The EU and the US decided to impose sanctions on Burma [in 1997], but the impact of the EU sanctions is limited because France has considerable interests in the country's oil and gas industry. Measures of this nature can only undermine a dictatorship in the long term; in an acute crisis they tend to have the effect of strengthening a regime. Sweden's government must whole-heartedly support the demands for further EU measures. One option would be to link sanctions against the generals' interests abroad [for example freezing their assets] with the promise of new investments - under the condition that the country is democratised. Solidarity with those who are fighting for democracy must always remain a basic European principle." (28/09/2007)

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Sarah Halifa-Legrand interviews Valérie Niquet, director of the Asian department of The French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), on the use of sanctions against Burma. "Sarkozy's first declaration demanding the withdrawal of French investment in Burma, which mainly concerned Total, was an audacious but naïve demand, being very difficult to put in practice. It was probably a means of responding to the French population's emotional reaction towards the situation in Burma. ... The withdrawal of investments, sanctions, basically the strategy of marginalising the regime, is nothing new and we can see the results today: they actually made things easier for China. A power far less scrupulous about human rights has taken over. ... New sanctions will not change the situation so long as Beijing doesn't join in." (28/09/2007)

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Christian Ultsch criticises China: "China wasn't even willing to sign a UN Security Council declaration rebuking the Burmese army for its suppression of the monks' protests, much less approve sanctions... Yet two years ago all UN member states agreed that each government is responsible for protecting its citizens against crimes against humanity. When a government fails to do this, the international community is supposed to intervene. Burma's government is not protecting its citizens, it's shooting them, yet the world still hasn't taken action. China is to blame for this, not the UN." (28/09/2007)

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In an interview with Barbara Oertel, Ukrainian author Andrej Kurkov lashes out against the politicians who fronted the "Orange Revolution" and says his country is not yet ready for EU membership. "Europe has enough problems of its own. What's important is that Poland and Lithuania continue to act as advocates for Ukraine. This will suffice to keep the European idea alive in Ukraine. It will be at least another 15 years before Ukraine is ready for EU membership anyway. We must be patient and wait and see what the EU looks like fifteen years from now. Then we will know whether EU membership is worthwhile for Ukraine." (28/09/2007)

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The Moldovan playwright Nicoleta Esinencu has achieved international fame. Her play "Fuck you, Eu.ro.Pa" has already been performed in Romania, Moldova, France, Russia and Germany. Romanian theatre critic Mirella Nedelcu-Patureau asks where the anger expressed by the play's protagonist comes from: "Why does she have the urgent need to insult what was once a shining dream amidst the misery of everyday life and was unattainable for so long?... In the ex-Soviet republic of Moldova everything has the colour 'of shit,' the protagonist of Esinencu's play proclaims. While all of a sudden a Europe of plenty makes inroads into the dreary routine of life in Moldova, a sense of growing disappointment begins to spread among the new generation that at first was so eager to discover the pleasures of the longed-for consumer society... Theatre and our European society need this kind of text, this kind of revolt, this cynical cursing filled with teeth-gnashing black humour that, like in ancient myths, whips up the waves of an indifferent ocean." (28/09/2007)

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Nicolae Corneanu, Metropolitan of Banat, has admitted that for 41 years he worked as a spy for the Romanian secret police organisation Securitate. Cristian Patrasconi calls on the new patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Daniel Ciobotea, to adopt a clear stance on the secret service past of church dignitaries. "He has a serious problem: on the one hand Metropolitan Nicolae Corneanu has expressed his regret, on the other hand high dignitaries who are likewise suspected of having worked for Securitate remain unaffected. This is the most important challenge for Daniel since he took office. If we look to Poland - a country we envy for many reasons - we see what high dignitaries who played a similarly reprehensible role between traitor and servant of the church have done there: they have resigned." (28/09/2007)

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The daily deplores the soaring incidence of sexual trafficking filling a growing number of UK brothels. "By Home Office estimates, 4,000 women are trafficked into Britain each year. The actual number is likely to be far higher, but even among those who have escaped from brothels only a tiny minority have been persuaded to testify against their gangmasters. As a result there have been just 30 convictions under the Sexual Offences Act in the past three years. The trafficking of women feeds a modern slavery that is thriving behind net curtains and neighbours' averted eyes. To ease appalling suffering, but also to boost conviction rates, it is imperative to expand initiatives such as the Poppy Project in London, which provides escaped prostitutes with a refuge and a chance to gather the courage to speak out. With their help we will be better equipped to curb this cruel industry." (28/09/2007)

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The Spanish daily revealed on Wednesday, September 26th, the written account of a private conversation held on February 23rd, 2003, between George W. Bush and José Maria Aznar, then prime minister of Spain. They would, it appears, have attacked Iraq with or without a UN resolution. For the paper, "The contrast between the crazy nonchalance with which they took this decision and its terrifying consequences can serve as a useful lesson for an unstable and ever so uncertain world. In contrast with what happened in the Texan ranch, democratic leaders do not seek to do good, but rather avoid doing bad: there lies the difference between messianic and politics. When the decision makers of this war spoke of arms of massive destruction, when they took this pretext to conceal their fear, even lying about the danger threatening us, they were pretending to act like politicians while in reality taking themselves for messiahs." (28/09/2007)

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In its editorial the daily considers France's budget, unveiled on Wednesday, September 26th. "An archetypal political act, the 2008 budget, should logically have symbolised the 'rupture' so lauded by Nicolas Sarkozy. This is not the case. Without much coherence or real ambition, the project appears above all to symbolise the government's hesitation: it fails to strike a position between the strong will of the Head of State (for whom the reduction of the public deficit is not a priority) and the rigour of the Prime Minister (who considers that France is in a state of 'bankruptcy'). At the beginning of the week, the government had already presented a disappointing rescue plan for social security well below what is required, explicitly postponing the painful decision until Spring after municipal elections. The same applies to the budget. Thus no one can find their bearings in this budget which is being called by the most lenient a wait-and-see budget." (28/09/2007)

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Jean Pisani-Ferry, from the Breugel Institute of Economic Analysis in Brussels, considers that "disunity poses a problem" in the euro zone. "It suffices to listen to the declarations being proffered here and there. Common positions exist, but are not always systematically supported by member states. The euro zone is less divided than it seems, but it is still too divided to prevent a great raucous from bursting out. What is needed is to clarify the doctrine and to agree on what belongs to monetary policy, what is the responsibility of the [European Central Bank], what lies with financial diplomacy and what is the responsability of the governments. There has been too much ambiguity. There needs to be more verbal discipline and more collective action. We are entering a difficult zone in which the viability of the monetary European Union may be put to the test." (28/09/2007)

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The weekly finds that "Swiss cheese offers a surprising model for European agricultural reform. ... This summer saw the near-total liberalisation of Swiss-EU cheese trade. This ended years of import barriers that doubled the cost of some EU cheese on Swiss shelves, as well as export subsidies that dumped half-priced Emmental in places like Italy. ... This Swiss experiment matters to the rest of Europe. For it foreshadows, in microcosm, a bigger bet on globalisation that reformers would like to make for most European agriculture. ... The Swiss bet on globalisation does not affect trade with the EU alone. Switzerland still slaps big tariffs on New Zealand dairy products. But more competition will stir things up. Aberrations like Swiss mozzarella or brie may struggle against the real thing from Italy and France. Authenticity will come to matter more." (28/09/2007)

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In her column, the journalist Paula Moura Pinheiro shares her enthusiasm for Carlos Saura's new film 'Fado', which is all about the famous Portuguese music. "The world premiere of the film will be on Portuguese screens on October 4th. There will inevitably be a polemic with conservatives being irritated by how eclectic the musical selection is. ... Fado is a form of song with mixed roots. The result is the synthesis of the epic 15th century discoveries and the ruins that followed. This is how Saura has interpreted our fado. He saw that there are several fados, not just one. ... For once Portugal will be heard, seen and loved, not for Ronaldo's feet or for Mourinho's head [football stars]. It is ironic that the project's creator is a Spaniard. I am proud of the way he celebrates my country's people, their song and the way he is bringing our fado to the world." (22/09/2007)

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Whether it's the Wieliczka saltmine near Cracow, Warsaw's central station, the Maltasee in Posen, converted swimming pools or old factories, young Polish theatre groups are discovering and using new venues beyond the traditional theatres for their plays, Aneta Kyziol reports. "Is this a new trend? Or is it just snobbishness? It's probably a mixture of both, but for more and more off-theatre groups the search for a venue is vital for their survival, a matter of to-be-or-not-to-be. The number of theatres in Poland is stagnating. The established theatre houses are not fond of the new generation and even if they are willing to let them use their stages, the rent often exceeds the means of an off-group." But Kyziol points out that there is an advantage. "These unusual venues create a unique atmosphere you wouldn't have in a 'real' theatre. They generate an excitement born of the experience of participating in something extraordinary because together with the artists, you're discovering a new world." (26/09/2007)

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Nocturnal sales of alcohol have been prohibited for some time now in the Estonian capital of Tallinn. The Estonian daily welcomes this policy given that alcohol addiction is a growing problem in the three Baltic states, as well as in Finland. "The consumption of spirits is about as high in Estonia as in its neighbouring countries. Apparently a large proportion of the population doesn't know its limits. Pointing to our traditional wine culture is no excuse: we're talking about spirits and wine here - and not only by the glass. Therefore it's a good idea for Estonia to set an example for its neighbours. They too must find a solution for limiting alcohol consumption because none of the four states is happy with the current situation." (27/09/2007)

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