Week # 102 - Dated January 10-16, 2010
WESTERN EUROPE
Britain has ruled out copying the United States by proposing a special tax on banks to recover state funds used to bailout lenders
during the financial crisis. Meanwhile the British government banned an Islamist group Islam4UK on charges of glorifying al-Qaida and having links with terror plots in the UK and abroad.
Oxford, Cambridge and other British universities have voiced alarm at the government's plan to cut their funding. Unlike most elite institutions in the United States, Britain's top schools rely almost exclusively on taxpayers; but strapped for cash, the government has slashed its higher education budget by 600 million pounds (nearly $1 billion) over the next three years.
EU’s new commissioner for economic and monetary affairs has ruled out excluding Greece from the eurozone, despite the country's financial crisis. Meanwhile Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has unveiled a three-year plan to restore financial stability to his economically embattled country.
UN Special Envoy for Cyprus Alexander Downer has said that he is satisfied with intensified talks on reunification that began this week between Cypriot President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat.
A top French lawmaker has submitted a draft law this week banning Islamic dress (head-to-toe robe and veil) anywhere in public, a measure that would set a European precedent
A deadly shooting rampage against Togo's soccer team in Angola has pushed France into an awkward position, leading to the opening of a terrorism inquiry into the role of an Angolan separatist that it had been backing for years
Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, one of the country's most popular politicians, is due to go on trial in March for allegedly insulting Muslims as a group and inciting hatred and discrimination against them. Meanwhile U.N. human rights officials have voiced concern about Italy's deep-rooted racism against migrants following clashes in a southern town between African farm workers, residents and police.
Pope Benedict XVI's planned visit to Rome's main synagogue this week has sharply divided Italian Jews. Some are angered by his efforts to push World War II Pope Pius XII towards sainthood who, many believe turned a blind eye to the persecution of Jews during the War.
Britain has ruled out copying the United States by proposing a special tax on banks to recover state funds used to bailout lenders
during the financial crisis. Meanwhile the British government banned an Islamist group Islam4UK on charges of glorifying al-Qaida and having links with terror plots in the UK and abroad.Oxford, Cambridge and other British universities have voiced alarm at the government's plan to cut their funding. Unlike most elite institutions in the United States, Britain's top schools rely almost exclusively on taxpayers; but strapped for cash, the government has slashed its higher education budget by 600 million pounds (nearly $1 billion) over the next three years.
EU’s new commissioner for economic and monetary affairs has ruled out excluding Greece from the eurozone, despite the country's financial crisis. Meanwhile Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has unveiled a three-year plan to restore financial stability to his economically embattled country.
UN Special Envoy for Cyprus Alexander Downer has said that he is satisfied with intensified talks on reunification that began this week between Cypriot President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat.
A top French lawmaker has submitted a draft law this week banning Islamic dress (head-to-toe robe and veil) anywhere in public, a measure that would set a European precedent
A deadly shooting rampage against Togo's soccer team in Angola has pushed France into an awkward position, leading to the opening of a terrorism inquiry into the role of an Angolan separatist that it had been backing for years
Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, one of the country's most popular politicians, is due to go on trial in March for allegedly insulting Muslims as a group and inciting hatred and discrimination against them. Meanwhile U.N. human rights officials have voiced concern about Italy's deep-rooted racism against migrants following clashes in a southern town between African farm workers, residents and police.
Pope Benedict XVI's planned visit to Rome's main synagogue this week has sharply divided Italian Jews. Some are angered by his efforts to push World War II Pope Pius XII towards sainthood who, many believe turned a blind eye to the persecution of Jews during the War.
SOUTH-EAST EUROPE
Montenegro has recently established diplomatic relations with Kosovo while Mauritania has become the 65th country to recognize Kosovo's independence. Meanwhile the KFOR (Kosovo Force) has called the Serb parallel structures in Kosovo dangerous, and a violation of UN Resolution 1244. Further more Wolfgang Ischinger, former EU envoy for Kosovo's status has said that Serbia's membership in the EU will be conditioned on resolving its disagreements with Kosovo.
The EU's new Foreign Affairs chief-designate, Catherine Ashton, has called for an effective strategy to overcome the political stalemate in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) while rejecting the idea of holding a referendum on the status of BiH's entities, as requested by Republika Srpska Prime Minister Milorad Dodik. Meanwhile President Boris Tadic has said that Croat and Muslim representatives must apologize for war crimes committed against Serbs in the former Yugoslavia.
Albania has requested activation of the European Civil Protections Mechanism to help it cope with floods caused by torrential rains and melting snows.
US/CANADA
The US-based democracy watchdog group Freedom House has revealed in its annual survey that for the fourth year in a row, setbacks in political rights and civil liberties in 2009 outweighed improvements of freedoms around the world. The results represent the longest continuous period of decline for global freedom in the nearly 40-year history
Meanwhile in the US the number of sole breadwinner working moms rose last year to an all-time high, while the number of stay-at-home dads edged higher aswell, in a shift of traditional gender roles caused partly by massive job losses. By the numbers, about 4 percent or 963,000 moms were the only parent in the labor force. The share of fathers as the sole worker was much bigger -- 28.2 percent or 7.3 million -- but still the lowest since 2001. The share of couples who both work stayed the same at 66 percent or 17 million. There were 158,000 stay-at-home dads, up from 140,000 in 2008. Still, the number is less than 1 percent of married couples.
President Barack Obama has slammed Wall Street's "audacity" for fighting a bailout fee he wants to slap on financial firms and said his Republican opponents had sided with big banks. With Obama's popularity hovering around 50 percent and congressional elections in November, analysts comment that the White House wants to cast itself alongside ordinary Americans while branding Republicans as the party for the rich.
According to a recent poll Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's decision to suspend Parliament has cost his party its lead in public support, where Harper's Conservatives show 31 percent popular support and the opposition Liberals show 30 percent
LATIN AMERICA
Speculations about the proper tracking of aid money to Haiti are on a rise especially since U.S. government auditors pulled out of the country years ago after concerns over kidnappings and other crimes. Meanwhile France has suspended expelling illegal immigrants from Haiti in the wake of the disaster.
A judge has ordered Argentina's fired Central Bank chief to be restored to his post, a day after President Cristina Fernandez removed him in a bitter fight over control of the bank's reserves. The Bank’s Chief reportedly refused to use international reserves to pay the external debt. Argentina's stocks, bonds and currency have lost ground in the wake of the dispute.
Meanwhile Cristina Fernandez has condemned political moves aided by the country's justice sectors to impede the running of her government. The president has also ordered the military to declassify all "dirty war"-related documents.
Brazil’s Human Rights Minister Pablo Vanucchi has threatened to resign if the military are successful in changing a bill creating a truth commission to review human rights violations that occurred during Brazil’s military dictatorship (1964-85).
Meanwhile Mexican President Felipe Calderon has declared jobs and reducing poverty his top two priorities in 2010, while the fight against drug cartels that dominated the first half of his presidency placed third.
Venezuela's hopes of an early inclusion into the Mercosur trading bloc suffered a new blow as Paraguayan Vice President Federico Franco ruled out ratification of the pact while Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez ‘harbored designs’ on the landlocked state.
Also Venezuela is at risk of a devastating power collapse as drought pushes water levels precariously low in the country's biggest hydroelectric dam, posing a serious political threat for Hugo Chavez. The President has announced a sharp devaluation of the country’s currency, a move that reflects the financial stress faced by his government since the price of oil, the country’s top export commodity, fell from its peak as a result of the global financial crisis.
AUSTRALASIA
Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said Tuesday that ties with India had not been undermined by a series of recent attacks against Indians living in Australia. The unsolved stabbing murder of 21-year-old Nitin Garg earlier this month caused anger among Indians in Australia and overseas and prompted India's External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna to suggest it would hurt ties. §
Montenegro has recently established diplomatic relations with Kosovo while Mauritania has become the 65th country to recognize Kosovo's independence. Meanwhile the KFOR (Kosovo Force) has called the Serb parallel structures in Kosovo dangerous, and a violation of UN Resolution 1244. Further more Wolfgang Ischinger, former EU envoy for Kosovo's status has said that Serbia's membership in the EU will be conditioned on resolving its disagreements with Kosovo.
The EU's new Foreign Affairs chief-designate, Catherine Ashton, has called for an effective strategy to overcome the political stalemate in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) while rejecting the idea of holding a referendum on the status of BiH's entities, as requested by Republika Srpska Prime Minister Milorad Dodik. Meanwhile President Boris Tadic has said that Croat and Muslim representatives must apologize for war crimes committed against Serbs in the former Yugoslavia.
Albania has requested activation of the European Civil Protections Mechanism to help it cope with floods caused by torrential rains and melting snows.
US/CANADA
The US-based democracy watchdog group Freedom House has revealed in its annual survey that for the fourth year in a row, setbacks in political rights and civil liberties in 2009 outweighed improvements of freedoms around the world. The results represent the longest continuous period of decline for global freedom in the nearly 40-year history
Meanwhile in the US the number of sole breadwinner working moms rose last year to an all-time high, while the number of stay-at-home dads edged higher aswell, in a shift of traditional gender roles caused partly by massive job losses. By the numbers, about 4 percent or 963,000 moms were the only parent in the labor force. The share of fathers as the sole worker was much bigger -- 28.2 percent or 7.3 million -- but still the lowest since 2001. The share of couples who both work stayed the same at 66 percent or 17 million. There were 158,000 stay-at-home dads, up from 140,000 in 2008. Still, the number is less than 1 percent of married couples.
President Barack Obama has slammed Wall Street's "audacity" for fighting a bailout fee he wants to slap on financial firms and said his Republican opponents had sided with big banks. With Obama's popularity hovering around 50 percent and congressional elections in November, analysts comment that the White House wants to cast itself alongside ordinary Americans while branding Republicans as the party for the rich.
According to a recent poll Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's decision to suspend Parliament has cost his party its lead in public support, where Harper's Conservatives show 31 percent popular support and the opposition Liberals show 30 percent
LATIN AMERICA
Speculations about the proper tracking of aid money to Haiti are on a rise especially since U.S. government auditors pulled out of the country years ago after concerns over kidnappings and other crimes. Meanwhile France has suspended expelling illegal immigrants from Haiti in the wake of the disaster.
A judge has ordered Argentina's fired Central Bank chief to be restored to his post, a day after President Cristina Fernandez removed him in a bitter fight over control of the bank's reserves. The Bank’s Chief reportedly refused to use international reserves to pay the external debt. Argentina's stocks, bonds and currency have lost ground in the wake of the dispute.
Meanwhile Cristina Fernandez has condemned political moves aided by the country's justice sectors to impede the running of her government. The president has also ordered the military to declassify all "dirty war"-related documents.
Brazil’s Human Rights Minister Pablo Vanucchi has threatened to resign if the military are successful in changing a bill creating a truth commission to review human rights violations that occurred during Brazil’s military dictatorship (1964-85).
Meanwhile Mexican President Felipe Calderon has declared jobs and reducing poverty his top two priorities in 2010, while the fight against drug cartels that dominated the first half of his presidency placed third.
Venezuela's hopes of an early inclusion into the Mercosur trading bloc suffered a new blow as Paraguayan Vice President Federico Franco ruled out ratification of the pact while Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez ‘harbored designs’ on the landlocked state.
Also Venezuela is at risk of a devastating power collapse as drought pushes water levels precariously low in the country's biggest hydroelectric dam, posing a serious political threat for Hugo Chavez. The President has announced a sharp devaluation of the country’s currency, a move that reflects the financial stress faced by his government since the price of oil, the country’s top export commodity, fell from its peak as a result of the global financial crisis.
AUSTRALASIA
Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said Tuesday that ties with India had not been undermined by a series of recent attacks against Indians living in Australia. The unsolved stabbing murder of 21-year-old Nitin Garg earlier this month caused anger among Indians in Australia and overseas and prompted India's External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna to suggest it would hurt ties. §
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Business and Politics in the Muslim World (BPM)refers to the project entitled, "Globalized Business and Politics: A View from the Muslim World.' The blog development project has been undertaken and jointly developed by the Gilani Research Foundation and BPM as a free resource and social discussion tool.
Please Preview your comments before posting.
Business and Politics in the Muslim World (BPM)refers to the project entitled, "Globalized Business and Politics: A View from the Muslim World.' The blog development project has been undertaken and jointly developed by the Gilani Research Foundation and BPM as a free resource and social discussion tool.
Please Preview your comments before posting.
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