Caretaker Government in Athens? Greece Backs Away From Referendum Plans
Amid growing fears of a governmental collapse in Athens, Prime Minister Giorgios Papandreou on Thursday scrapped plans for a bailout referendum and moved to start talks on a national unity government. He has, however, refused to step down, saying that new elections would mean a Greek exit from the euro zone.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Chinese Output Affected by Europe’s Crisis
Industrial activity slowed down unexpectedly in October because of lower foreign demand. Banks ease credit, increasing the risk of “bad loans.” Meanwhile, Chinese shares gain today.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) — China’s global factory activity slowed down in October on weak demand for exports, raising the risk that Europe’s debt crisis could drag the global economy into a new recession. In order to maintain output, the authorities are loosening credit strings but banks could find themselves stuck with “bad loans”.
The official purchasing managers’ index (PMI), based on a survey of 820 manufacturers, dropped to 50.4 in October from 51.2 in September, the worst point since February 2009. A reading below 50 suggests a contraction. The decline was unexpected, far below the 51.8 forecast by many economists.
Output among Asian industrial nations dropped in October to its lowest point in three years, as exports to Europe and the United States declined. Many now fear that Europe’s foreign debt crisis might plunge the world in a new recession.
Manufacturing activity in Taiwan contracted in October to 43.7 from 44.5 in September, whilst South Korea saw a slight improvement with its reading increasing to 48 in October from 47.5 in the previous month.
An official index measuring new export orders fell to 48.6 in October from 50.9 in September. “The fall in the October PMI indicates that economic growth is likely to slow further in the future,” Zhang Liqun, a government analyst, said.
“I think the best we can hope for is a prolonged period of sluggish growth, but there has to be a significant risk that a further escalation of the financial crisis in Europe tips the world back into recession,” said Julian Jessop, chief global economist at Capital Economics in London.
China’s figures are worrisome because government and banks are already heavily involved in propping up manufacturing.
In its survey of more than 430 purchasing managers, HSBC found that activity expanded slightly, with its index hitting 51.0 in October compared with 49.9 in September ..
“The improvement in the HSBC PMI was likely supported by the government’s policies to alleviate the pain being felt by smaller companies,” said Chang Jian, an economist at Barclays Capital.
China’s economic growth slowed to 9.1 per cent in the third quarter from 9.5 per cent in the second quarter.
China’s top four banks (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Bank of China and Agricultural Bank of China) extended 140 billion yuan (US$ 22 billion) of new loans in October, signalling the government’s intention to pump more money to bolster companies in difficulty.
In previous months, the authorities had imposed restrictions on loans to curb inflation, which experts now hope to see declining.
However, this will raise the risk of more bad loans. The China Construction Bank, the second-largest mainland lender by assets, said non-performing loans (NPL) rose 1.9 per cent in the third quarter from the previous quarter, whilst Bank of China, the fourth-largest mainland bank by assets, said bad loans in that period increased 1.6 per cent.
Increasingly, Chinese authorities have been criticised for using banks to support the economy at the expense of the long-term viability of its financial institutions.
Meanwhile, shares are up. In Hong Kong, they staged a rebound 1.9 per cent by mid-day Wednesday reversing a 2.5 per cent loss yesterday.
The Shanghai Composite ended the day up 1.4 per cent at its highest level in nearly 1-1/2 months after China’s Vice Finance Minister confirmed the economy was on the right track. (PB)
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
European Central Bank Cuts Benchmark Interest Rate a Quarter Point to 1.25 Percent
The European Central Bank lowered its benchmark interest rate Thursday, as the new president, Mario Draghi, acted quickly to address a looming recession and acute tension caused by the sovereign debt crisis.
Mr. Draghi, assuming office at one of the most dramatic points in the history of the euro zone, signaled with the decision that he may be more willing than his predecessor, Jean-Claude Trichet, to tolerate inflation in the name of growth and economic stability. The bank cut the benchmark rate to 1.25 percent from 1.5 percent.
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Greece: EU to Tell Papandreou No Alternative to Bailout Budget Cuts
2 Nov. Brussels (AKI/Bloomberg) — European leaders racing to prevent their week-old debt crisis strategy from unravelling convene emergency talks today to tell Greece there is no alternative to the budget cuts imposed in the bailout plan.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, his hold on power weakening, was summoned to Cannes on the eve of a Group of 20 summit where he will hear from French President Nicolas Sarkozy that the “only way to resolve Greek debt problems” is through a deal hammered out last week in a six-day crisis-management marathon.
Papandreou triggered the latest upheaval in the two-year- long crisis by abruptly announcing on Oct. 31 a parliamentary confidence vote and his desire to hold a referendum on the rescue pact. Global stocks, the euro and bonds of debt-strapped countries tumbled yesterday as concern of a disorderly Greek default mounted.
“Given the state of markets and world affairs in general, it is clear that the leaders will work hard at sending a positive message of cooperation and solidarity” from the G-20, said Erik Nielsen, global chief economist at UniCredit Bank AG in London. “But, frankly, it is difficult to be too optimistic.”
People ‘Perplexed’
Papandreou will join a group comprising Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde as well as European Union authorities, according to a statement from Sarkozy’s office.
Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said today in Tokyo that “everyone is perplexed” by Greece’s referendum decision and that the issue will be discussed at the Cannes summit.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, under pressure to cut Europe’s second-biggest debt load, convened a special meeting of advisers late yesterday to discuss budget-cutting plans. Like Sarkozy, Berlusconi held crisis talks with Merkel yesterday. His key cabinet ministers will meet today to draft measures for the country’s financial stability legislation.
Papandreou’s announcement, which Sarkozy said “surprised all of Europe,” threatens to overshadow a Nov. 3-4 Group of 20 summit in Cannes, France. European leaders had designated the talks as a stage to present their plan to stamp out the crisis and end the threat to the global economy.
“The referendum will be a clear mandate and strong message within and without Greece on our European course and our participation in the euro,” Papandreou told his ministers in Athens late yesterday, according to an e-mailed transcript. It will “ensure this course in the most decisive way”.
EU officials had hoped to use the Oct. 27 rescue agreement, which includes renewed commitments to fiscal austerity as well as new rescue resources, to anchor their economic agenda at the G-20 summit and secure support from their counterparts. Now, officials meeting as the confidence vote plays out in Athens will be called on to assess the deal’s — and the euro’s — future, especially if Papandreou’s government falls and Greece comes under more pressure to default or leave the common currency.
European leaders agreed to boost the European Financial Stability Facility’s firepower to 1 trillion euros ($1.4 trillion), set aside 100 billion euros for Greece and provide 30 billion euros in collateral for a debt swap that will give Greece’s investors new, lower-risk bonds at 50 percent of the existing bonds’ face value.
The deal to reduce Greece’s debt load will do nothing to aid the country’s recovery from recession, opposition New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras said on Oct. 27. Papandreou’s majority meanwhile slipped as his support narrowed to 152 lawmakers in the 300-deputy parliament amid a party rebellion.
Whether the EU’s plan would succeed “was a matter for debate. But at least there was a plan,” Yiannis Koutelidakis of Fathom Financial Consulting in London, said in a note yesterday. “The risks engendered by this move are profound for the euro in general, not just for Greece as the expulsion of any one member state would critically undermine the Economic and Monetary Union.”
Such uncertainty “will likely block any” governments outside the euro-area from stumping up cash for its reworked rescue fund as the continent’s leaders would like, said Jacques Cailloux, chief European economist at Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc. While Brazil and Russia have signalled a willingness to help, Chinese officials say they want more details.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Greek Prime Minister Calls Off Referendum on Bailout Plan
Saying that the plan had served its purpose by creating a broader national consensus behind the European Union debt relief deal for his country, Prime Minister George Papandreou of Greece said on Thursday that he was calling off a controversial plan to hold a national referendum on the deal.
The announcement followed word earlier in the day from the leader of Greeceâ€(tm)s main opposition party that he would reverse course and back the debt deal, which imposes new austerity measures on Greece, saying it was unavoidable. Mr. Papandreou still faces a confidence vote in the Greek Parliament on Friday.
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May God Defend the EU’s Heretics
Die Presse, Vienna
Irresponsible? Poker game? — The reactions to the Greek referendum are revealing how tenaciously the “Brussels Congregation of the Faithful” are sticking to their dogmas. And that’s a good thing, writes the editor of Die Presse: as things stand, Europe’s last chance is heresy.
Michael Fleischhacker
The comments on the shock announcement of a referendum in Greece on the European aid and austerity package have opened up a revealing insight into the everyday business of moulding European public opinion. It’s strongly reminiscent of how evangelical groups work.
The Brussels-based, reasonable community of professional Europeans who stand by “Europe” are celebrating a kind of open mass. The bearers of the vestments prompt each other for prayers, which are recorded for posterity by the journalists in the audience.
The most important formulae in the current form of the European rite are: The Greek Prime Minister has started a “reckless game of poker”; a “No vote by the Greeks would have unforeseeable consequences”; the matters currently being negotiated are just too complex to be left to the people to decide — let alone now of all times, before the measures come into effect! — and perhaps the current, national variant of parliamentary democracy isn’t actually up to the job of tackling global issues.
Like the Roman Congregation, the professional Europeans have developed an elaborate system of standards for testing for orthodoxy. Mirroring the complexity of the postmodern world, there are hardly any unique features marking the apostasy from the European faith.
Only those who, for example, hold obdurately to the belief that national interests should be not only the legitimate, but perhaps even the decisive element of European politics, must reckon with excommunication. Everything else — typical of Europe — is negotiable.
European opinion-priests
For believers, the existence of such a supreme authority in doctrinal matters is vital. Just imagine if every European had to make up his own mind about whether it’s better to respond to the disintegration of the eurozone by reducing the number of member countries sharing the common currency, or by bringing in a central government which, by a laying on of hands, heals the rift between the economies of the Netherlands and Greece.
That would almost be like asking every single visitor to a Catholic Mass to come up with his or her own interpretation of transubstantiation (in the popular lingo, “transformation”): impossible, not to say intolerable.
And so we have to imagine the European opinion-priests as a blessing upon us. One ought even to consider chasing down heretics who fall away from the pure doctrine of the United Central States of Europe in a restrained manner, as an outward sign of respect, so to speak.
Heresies have arisen at all times by asking questions. To question means to doubt, and doubt is the poison of orthodoxy.
What do the United Commentators from Europe want to tell us when they declare with deep indignation that a “No” from the Greeks to the resolutions of the Brussels Congress would have “unforeseeable consequences”?
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Srdja Trifkovic: Papandreou’s Coup De Main
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou’s decision to call off the referendum on the EU-brokered rescue plan may look like a sign of weakness. Not so. The wily Socialist has forced the opposition to get off the fence and declare its support for his policies. He has seriously scared, rather than merely “infuriated,” his European partners. Papandreou’s decision was a classic jiu-jitsu gambit, using own weakness to sap opponents’ strength. It illustrates a national talent for nifty ploys that comes with many centuries of playing political games with powerful foreigners—from Romans, Latins and Turks to the EU leaders of our own time.
First a disclaimer: I do not like George Papandreou any more than I ever liked the rest of the clan. His late father Andreas—a redistributionist demagogue leading a scandalous private life—presided over Greece’s descent into public indebtedness, from 20% of the GNP when he took office in 1980 to over 80% when he completed his second term in 1989. By the time he died in 1996 after a third term of office, the country was irredeemably weaned off the steady diet of fiscal responsibility bequeathed by the Colonels.
Secondly, what Papandreou has achieved—a temporary stabilization of his domestic position and a stronger hand to seek an even better deal from his ruffled northern creditors—is not necessarily in the Greek interest. On balance Greece would be better off leaving the eurozone, reintroducing the drachma, defaulting, devaluing, and pulling herself by her bootstraps in the years to come. Argentina suffered capital flight just before her 2002 default and some trouble attracting foreign investment in its immediate aftermath, but in the long term the devalued peso made Argentine exports cheap and competitive abroad, while discouraging imports and producing a hefty trade surplus. An aggressive revenue-collecting program (of the kind Greece can and should emulate) further helped keep the books well balanced. By January 2006 Argentine foreign currency reserves had reached $28 billion.
Being an Euro-socialist at heart, Papandreou preferred a tactical coup de main that strengthens his hand while changing nothing in Greece’s unenviable strategic position. But at a tactical level he did well. As I wrote on Tuesday, on the domestic front Papandreou’s gamble made sense:…
| — Hat tip: Srdja Trifkovic | [Return to headlines] |
Alleged DHS Leaker Elibiary the Only Adviser Given Access to HS Database
Now comes an even more disturbing revelation from inside DHS that Mohamed Elibiary is the only member of the Homeland Security Advisory Council — one out of 26 members — who has been given access to the HS SLIC database. I have repeatedly asked DHS spokesman Chris Ortman by phone and email why Elibiary was given special access to the HS SLIC database, and when and how that special access was given, but after a week I have received no reply.
This new development raises questions about why an outside adviser who is not employed by any state or local law enforcement agency would be given access to a database intended for sharing intelligence between agencies. It should be noted that highly sensitive material, including FBI source reporting and terror watch lists, are posted on the HS SLIC system and would have been available to Elibiary.
| — Hat tip: Van Grungy | [Return to headlines] |
Outfitting the Obamanaut: The President’s New Space Clothes
The commander-in-chief, President Barack Obama, donned the jacket for a different type of commander while meeting with the astronauts who flew NASA’s final space shuttle mission inside the Oval Office at the White House on Tuesday (Nov. 1).
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Idea of Non-Eurozone Gains Support
In the context of increased integration of the Eurozone, “In Bucharest and London politicians are considering launching a group of non-eurozone countries”, announces Adevarul. The idea, first aired by Britain’s former foreign minister David Owen in the Financial Times, “germinated in the minds of leaders of non-euro countries in the course of meetings that preceded 23 and 26 October summits, and assumed a more concrete form in the declaration by British Prime Minister, David Cameron, who spoke of the UK’s intention to be a pivot state in a future non-euro zone”, the Bucharest daily explains.
According to Adevarul, Martin Schultz, the leader of the socialist group in the European parliament, has spoken of the possible emergence of “an EU divided in three parts: France and Germany, the rest of the Eurozone and other states with their national currencies”. In Bucharest, the Businessmen’s Association of Romania (AOAR) has already proposed that the government take the initiative to form such a “group”.
The daily remarks that the initiative would enable “countries that are not in the Eurozone to better protect their interests”, but at the same time warns that ensuring “the unity of the zone” would not necessarily be easy. “The Nordic social model in Denmark and Sweden is not aligned with the neoliberal model in Eastern European countries, and London’s status as a net contributor to the EU budget is very different to the status of Eastern countries which are net beneficiaries of the EU’s cohesion policy”, concludes Adevarul.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Italian Gas Prices Hit Record High
South pays 1.7 euros per liter, most in Italy
(ANSA) — Rome, November 3 — The average price of gasoline in Italy rose 0.9 cents Thursday to 1.631 euros per liter, a record high.
Analysts attribute the price hike to excise costs levied for emergency food and relief in the flood-stricken area near the border of the northwest regions of Liguria and Tuscany, which suffered massive damage and loss of life from serious storms last week.
The cost of gas was the highest in the south of Italy, where one liter cost 1.7 euros.
Diesel fuel costs also rose nationally to 1.542 euros per liter on average.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Stubb Under Fire for Behaviour at Nordic Council Meeting
SDP parliamentarian Maarit Feldt-Ranta said his public displays of disdain were also noted by other Nordic representatives.
“With his body language and words, our minister communicated that Nordic matters do not rate highly on his agenda,” said Feldt-Ranta, who served as deputy chair of the Finnish delegation.
Stubb meanwhile chalked it all up to a misunderstanding and said his fatigue may have led to the poor impression.
“Yesterday’s conference was good. Just as I love the EU I also love Nordic cooperation—this is really exciting, important and fun,” Stubb told YLE.
Some observers said Stubb cursed during the meeting, calling it “shit” among other things.
“It’s clear that one should not swear, especially not in earshot of others. If this happened, I’m deeply sorry,” said Stubb.
Finland holds the 2011 Nordic Council chairmanship. According to Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs, discussions centred on the current situation in North Africa and Palestine, and particularly on women’s rights in those areas.
| — Hat tip: KGS | [Return to headlines] |
Time Mag Paris Bureau: Sharia-Compliant
by Diana West
What journalist wouldn’t want to be Paris Bureau Chief for Time magazine, or anything else? Sounds so glamorous. But look closer and the job qualifications — sharia-compliance — are more than a little off-putting, certainly as exemplified by the man with the job, Bruce Crumley, on weighing in on the bombing of Charlie Hebdo. Poor man. Full-blown, late-stage and terminal Dhimmitude.
Excerpts from his Time piece:
1) “Not only are such Islamophobic antics futile and childish, but they also openly beg for the very violent responses from extremists their authors claim to proudly defy …”
2) It’s “hard to have much synpathy for [Charlie Hebdo] after it published another stupid and totally unnecessary edition mocking Islam.”
3) The “issue was certain to enrage hard-core Islamists (and offend average Muslims) with articles and “funny” cartoons featuring the Prophet Mohammed—depictions forbidden in Islam to boot.”
4) “…do you still think the price you paid for printing an offensive, shameful, and singularly humor-deficient parody on the logic of “because we can” was so worthwhile? If so, good luck with those charcoal drawings your pages will now be featuring.”…
| — Hat tip: Diana West | [Return to headlines] |
Time Magazine Calls for Censorship, Blames Victims of Islamic Attack on French Magazine That Lampooned Muhammad
In my article at Front Page today I wrote this: “The worst aspect of this firebombing is that there are certain to be voices in the West over the next few days — some of them no doubt quite prominent and respected — who will call on Westerners to be more ‘sensitive’ toward Muslims, and to end this unacceptable hurting of Muslim feelings by drawing cartoons of him and making him the honorary editor-in-chief of a comedy magazine.”
And here we are. The reason why this is the worst aspect of the firebombing is that these pleas to be more “sensitive” to Muslims amount essentially to calls for restrictions on the freedom of speech and the creation of a special, privileged class that is beyond criticism. That is the death of free society and the road to tyranny, for the class that is beyond criticism will have a free hand to do whatever it wants, and what will anyone be able to say?
But Bruce Crumley of Time Magazine, like so many other enlightened liberals, camouflages his slouch toward totalitarianism in the guise of “sensitivity” and resistance to “Islamophobia.” The huge, gaping hole in his argument, however, is that he is making it after Muslims reacted violently to satire. Judaism and Christianity are lampooned on a regular basis, but Bruce Crumley never lifted a finger to call for “sensitivity” toward the religious feelings of others when Piss Christ was being displayed as a serious work of art. So Crumley’s argument boils down to saying that we should capitulate in the face of violent intimidation. This is not really about being sensitive. It is about doing what the thugs want so they won’t hurt us again.
I’d rather die first.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Care in the Community Patient Killed Partner and Daughter in Front of Boy, Four
Rekawt Salih, 26, inflicted more than 100 stab wounds on his ex-partner Tracy Donnelly, 43, and her daughter Louise, 23, at Mrs Donnelly’s home in Sheffield, as her other four-year-old son slept on the couch.
A post mortem showed more than 30 stab wounds to Tracy’s body. She died from severe blood loss and collapsed lungs.
Louise had 70 injuries to her body and the tip of a knife which had broken off was embedded in her skull.
Salih was said to have used “extreme” force and both women put up a fight, with Tracy apparently trying to help her daughter as she was attacked.
Salih drove off in his BMW X5 but was later arrested by armed police with a taser after a chase during which he collided with a group of students, leaving four of them injured.
Sheffield Crown Court heard that Mr Salih, of Gleadless, had been admitted for a brief period for assessment under the Mental Health Act a year previously but was released back into the community.
| — Hat tip: Kitman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: EDL Leader Lennon ASBO Bid Rejected
A bid to prevent the leader of the English Defence League (EDL) from organising or attending rallies outside his home borough has been rejected.
The Crown Prosecution Service and Lancashire Constabulary jointly applied for an Asbo (Anti-Social Behaviour Order) against Stephen Lennon which would have effectively barred him from involvement with protests by the far-right group he founded.
However, District Judge Peter Ward refused the application and said he did not believe it would have been submitted but for the defendant’s links with the EDL.
The matter was dealt with after Lennon, 28, from Luton, Bedfordshire, was given a 12-week jail term, suspended for 12 months, for assaulting a fellow EDL member at a rally in Blackburn, Lancashire, in April.
The Crown argued that offence and a number of other relevant previous convictions showed he was a man that “needed to be restrained”.
In response, Lennon’s legal representatives said an Asbo would be “disproportionate” and that it amounted to the police being “desperate to stop him being involved with the EDL at all costs”.
Speaking outside Preston Magistrates’ Court, Lennon said: “This was an attempt to silence me and take away my democratic rights. I respect the judge for this decision. If the Asbo had been imposed, it would have meant me going to jail. I would have broken it and broken it.”
Lennon was warned he would be brought back before the courts if he committed another offence within 12 months. He was convicted of the common assault at an earlier hearing when he was found to have headbutted his victim shortly after speaking at a rally of 2,000 followers in Blackburn.
The Blackburn rally alone, where 13 arrests were made, cost £500,000 out of the Lancashire Police budget. The court heard that Lennon had been in charge of or assisted in the control of 70 such demonstrations nationwide.
Lennon will also be required to perform 150 hours of unpaid work for the assault conviction and pay £200 costs.
| — Hat tip: Gaia | [Return to headlines] |
Egyptian Sheikh Issues Fatwa Prohibiting Votes for Christian Secular Candidates
CARIO: Mohammad Amer, a Salafi Sheikh in Damanhur, Egypt, issued a fatwa prohibiting votes for any Christian, secular or liberal candidate, as well as any Muslim candidate who does not pray daily or call for the implementation of Shariah law.
“I want the voters to vote in favor of the candidates of the Islamic movements and to oppose those who want to separate religion from the state. There is nothing called liberalism in Islam and there is no absolute freedom in our religion,” he said to London’s Asharq al-Awsat newspaper, defending the move.
| — Hat tip: Kitman | [Return to headlines] |
Italy’s Effectiveness in Libya Mission Assessed at 79%
(AGI) Rome — The effectiveness of Italy’s Armed Forces in NATO’s Libya mission has been assessed at 79%, as reported by General Leandro De Vicenti, Italy’s Senior Representative in the Unified Protector mission, to Defense Minister La Russa. De Vincenti explained that Italy’s level of effectiveness, put the country “in second or third position alongside Norway and in front of France.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
New Swiss Revelations Over Libya Hostage Row
Foreign Affairs Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey asked Geneva’s top official to reprimand policemen involved in the arrest of Muammar Qaddhafi’s son in an attempt to smooth the release of a Swiss hostage in Libya, according to a new interview. Francois Longchamp, then president of Geneva’s executive council, told newspaper La Tribune de Geneve that he refused to intervene when the foreign minster made her surprising request.
“We were not going to sanction agents that did their work in an exemplary manner,” he said. According to his account, Calmy-Rey called him on May 19th 2010 to say that she was on the phone with a Qaddhafi emissary. Longchamp said Calmy-Rey told him that “Libya would agree to free the hostage if Switzerland sanctioned the policemen [involved in the arrest] to set an example.”
“She wanted an answer right away,” Longchamp told the newspaper, but he told the minister that he had to ask the cantonal government whether they would agree to the move, even though he already knew that the possibility had been “ruled out.”
During the interview, Longchamp revealed for the first time the details of the arrest, and how the authorities double-checked that Qaddhafi’s son had no diplomatic immunity. The Switzerland-Libya diplomatic crisis dates back to July 2008, when Qaddhafi’s son was arrested for beating up two of his servants at a luxury hotel in Geneva.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Tunisia: Radical Imams Looking to Conquer Mosques
(ANSAmed) — TUNIS — Tunis is already in the midst of fierce debate over its future, after the unexpected victory — at least in its scale — of the Islamist party Ennadha in elections for the country’s Constituent Assembly, but the country now finds itself facing a problem whose seriousness remains undefined but that does not appear to have a solution, namely the gradual conquest by the most hardline Islamists of the country’s mosques, which are hugely important from a theological point of view as well as for the number of worshippers who attend them.
What to Djemel Oueslati, the head of the Department of Religious Affairs, appears to be a simple statistic (hardliners control between 150 and 200 mosques throughout a country that has around 5,000, he told Reuters) is in fact a matter open to serious concern. Indeed, the advance of “pure” Muslims appears unstoppable, not least because of the speed at which it is occurring and, especially, with the state seemingly devoid of instruments with which to tackle it, if indeed it were to decide to do so.
This situation has not cemented itself in the last few weeks.
The phenomenon had already begun in the days following the dramatic fall of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. The toppling of the dictator created a power vacuum that was attended to only in theory by the appointment of a provisional government, with utmost confusion regarding roles and jurisdiction, while the situation paved the way for an aggressive strategy by hardliners who, after being opposed and repressed in the 23 years of Ben Ali’s regime, took advantage of the flight of the hated dictator and moved to take control of as many mosques as possible, a manifestation of real power, not only in the religious sense.
Slowly but surely, therefore, the fundamentalists, who are close to Salafist ideology began to “conquer” mosques controlled by moderate imams, who were forced to sneak out amid pressure of the most hardline groups, who used religious but also more “concrete” tactics to achieve their goal.
Mosques are officially controlled by the state, through the Ministry of Religious Affairs, which has the final say in the supervision of places of worship and of the behaviour of imams.
But, with the revolution and the elimination of one of the regime’s raisons d’etre — the state’s prevalence over religion, upholding the country’s secularity), this control has disintegrated and is now restricted to a handful of formal acts.
Whether or not this is admitted, the real problem is that controlling mosques also means controlling its worshippers, the majority of whom observe all rites and prayers and can be influenced by the aggressive preaching of the most fanatical clerics.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Cyprus-Israel: President Peres Warns Turkish Government
(ANSAmed) — NICOSIA, NOVEMBER 3 — Israeli President Simon Peres, today on an official visit to Cyprus, warned the Turkish government that it should respect international laws, saying that “the world is not being run by military threats, it is based on international law”.
Peres made his statement during a joint press conference with his Cypriot counterpart Dimitris Christofias, after talks in the presidential office in Nicosia. Answering a question from a journalist regarding the search for hydrocarbons Cyprus has started off its coasts and the presence in the area of the Turkish navy, Peres said that “the world is not being run by military threats, it is based on international law”.
The Israeli President underlined that Turkey should respect international law “because they form the basis of political relations” between nations. “We are not going to threaten anybody and we are not going to be afraid of threats,” Peres concluded.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Emirates: Cruise Sector Grows Despite Troubled Waters
(ANSAmed) — ROME, NOVEMBER 3 — The cruise market in the Arabian Gulf continues to grow, albeit amid uncertainty, occasional steps backwards and some elements still to be perfected.
With a history of just over ten years, the cruise industry in the United Arab Emirates, the main port for regional attractions, has grown from 17 stops in 2001 to 120 in 2011, with an estimate of 425,000 passengers by the end of the year.
Bahrain and Oman have both opened cruise terminals, but have paid the price for disorder in February and March in the wake of the “Jasmine revolution” in Tunisia, which has spread across the Arab world.
The consolidation of the market is confirmed by the 2012 edition of Arabian Travel Market (ATM), the most important shop window for regional tourism, which for the first time will host a pavilion dedicated entirely to cruises.
“The recent announcement that MSC has chosen Abu Dhabi and Dubai as its bases for “Lirica” during the forthcoming winter season is just the latest example of a new ship strengthening the fleet that plies the waters of the Gulf between November and May,” said Mark Walsh, the director of ATM.
From this week, Lirica, which arrived from Genoa a few days ago, will begin the cruise season in Abu Dhabi, while her older sister “Opera” will join the party from next year.
The departure from Abu Dhabi, however, is slowed by temporary structures. The current adjusted terminal at the Mina Zayed port is located in an area for the traffic of goods and used by cargo ships.
Beyond the port in the Emirati capital, there remain a number of other issues to be settled, a number of experts in the sector say.
“If the Gulf wants to grow as a cruise destination, new ports are needed, as well as more excursions, better infrastructure and a more fluid visa system,” said Chris Hayman, the president of Seatrade Middle East Convention.
Like the Arab Spring, these factors have influenced Costa Crociere’s decision to review its strategies in the area.
Despite the cancellation of the stopover in Bahrain, the setting for violent clashes between the government and protesters, the Italian company has downsized its presence, retaining only one ship in Dubai with a capacity of 3,800 passengers. “Favolosa” has replaced “Deliziosa” and “Luminosa”, which have been repositioned on other routes.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Lavrov: Russia Won’t Allow Syria to Become Another Libya
(AGI) Abu Dhabi — Sergei Lavrov said that Russia would not allow what happened in Libya to be repeated in Syria. The Russian foreign minister was referring to the military intervention in Libya that came to an end yesterday. “We will not allow such things to happen again,” Lavrov said at a press conference in Abu Dhabi at the end of a summit between Russia and the Gulf Cooperation Council. Lavrov indicated that the “approach applied to Yemen,” was the model to follow for Syria.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Lebanon: Law on Return Collaborationists From Israel Passed
(ANSAMed) — BEIRUT, NOVEMBER 3 — Nizar S. is a Lebanese man who has worked for years in a civilian hospital in the south of Lebanon, which was managed by the Israelis during the years of the occupation by Israeli troops that ended in the year 2000.
Fearing retaliations by militias of the Shiite Hezbollah movement, which led armed resistance against the occupation for years, Nizar S. has fled to the other side of the border, to “enemy country.” At least 2,000 other Lebanese have the same story to tell.
Most of them are Christians, who have worked together on various levels with the foreign troops during the 22 years of Israeli occupation, which has earned them the depreciative label of “collaborationists.”They have been “guests” of the Jewish State for more than ten years but are waiting to be able to return to their country. Now their dream may come true, at least according to the decision that was taken yesterday by the majority of the Lebanese parliament, approving a draft law that will allow thousands of Lebanese who fled 11 years ago to come back to Lebanon.
Many of them, like Nizar S., did not only work in the shadow of the occupation. They also served in the South Lebanon Army (SLA), a paramilitary formation of mostly Christians but also Shiites (before the creation of Hezbollah in 1982-85) and initially founded by Israel as anti-Palestinian movement. The new law was passed under a government dominated by the Hezbollah-led coalition. The Party of God has announced however that it considers the chapter of vengeance against the SLA to be closed, and that it only wants justice. This stance, according to some analysts, has a political background. Hezbollah’s main ally since February 2006 is the Free Patriotic Movement of former army general Michel Aoun, who supports the draft law for the return of “collaborationists” from Israel.
Local observers say that Aoun has his eyes on future votes: the south of Lebanon is an ‘ocean’ of Shiites with some ‘islands’ of Sunnis and ‘reefs’ of Christians. There are some important Christian areas along the Blue Line that separates Lebanon from Israel since 2000, where Aoun supporters have a broad popular basis. The law passed by the Lebanese Parliament — called an “indirect amnesty” by some local newspapers — now awaits implementation, but not before the government indicates the precise mechanism for the return of the exiles from Israel, together with their families. According to the Lebanese press, around 6,500 Lebanese fled over the border in May 2000.
Many of this group have emigrated to North America or Europe, and between 2,000 and 3,500 have stayed in Israel. These numbers are reported by the official website of the Lebanese community in Israel (www.LebaneseinIsrael.com). “We have preferred exile to the injustice of seeing our country yield to terrorists,” the website reads, referring to the Hezbollah rule over the south of Lebanon since the day Israel withdrew. The “Lebanese in Israel” dossier calls for a peace agreement between Lebanon and Israel, which has always been turned down by the Shiite movement. And the militias of the South Lebanon Army (1979-2000), if they decide to return to their country, will be handed over to the Lebanese authorities.
They will go on trial and will have to serve penalties depending on the level of support they have given to Israel. Their relatives on the other hand, based on the new law, will be free when they return, at least on paper.
“We will always be collaborationists,” said Musa N., a Lebanese man who fled to Israel in 2000 and returned in 2003.
After his trial and a 3-year sentence, he has been free for five years now. “But I can’t find work. I have a criminal record and despite all political promises, it has not been cleaned,” he said, quoted by the portal Lebanese Debate. That could be a reason why not everybody will decide to return. Certainly, this is true for the 84-year-old Antoine Lahad, the second and last commander in chief of the SLA. After fleeing to Israel, he tried to start a new life in France, but failed. He returned to Israel and opened a restaurant in Tel Aviv. His biography, in Israeli, was published in 2004. In Lebanon a life sentence is waiting for him.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey: Newspaper: German Lawyers Demand Erdogan Arrest
(ANSAmed) — ROME, NOVEMBER 3 — A group of German lawyers has lodged an appeal with the federal prosecutor demanding the arrest of the Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is currently on an official visit to Germany, and of all officials who have held the position of Defence Minister or Chief of Staff in Turkey in the last ten years, as soon as they set foot on German soil. The Turkish daily Radical, which is reporting the news, says that the Turkish officials are accused of state terrorism against Kurds.
The appeal by the German legal team says that Turkish soldiers used chemical weapons against Kurdish separatists. Article 7 of Germany’s penal code stipulates the protection of civilian population and the non-violation of laws. The arrest of the Turkish soldiers, the lawyers say, is therefore a duty.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Cosmic Research
A Trip to Mars — Without Leaving Russia
A simulated mission to Mars is drawing to a close in Moscow after 520 days. The test astronauts will be weak and pale, but an international team of researchers has learned a number of vital medical lessons. Now German scientists hope to start a more modern test of manned space flight near Cologne.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
India: Kashmir: False Accusations of Forced Conversion Against a Protestant Pastor
C. M. Khanna, pastor of All Saints Church in Srinagar accused of converting Muslim youth. The President of the Global Council of Indian Christians denounces the continuing cases of pressure and violence against the Christian minority in Kashmir.
Mumbai (AsiaNews) — The small Christian community of Kashmir is in danger and victim of harassment and violence by the Muslim majority, Sajan K. George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), tells AsiaNews following the complaint of forced conversions suffered on Oct. 29 by CM Khanna, pastor of All Saints Church.
According to the Grand Mufti Mufti Bashir-ud-din, the pastor would have encouraged some young Muslims to embrace Christianity, asking them to take a dip in a pool inside the church, near the cricket stadium in Srinagar. The leader claims to have video evidence of his charges. Khanna now must report to the Shariah court on 15 November.
Sajan George emphasizes that the evidence presented by the Islamists is fabricated and the accusations baseless, used to harass and intimidate the Christian minority. Often a rumour or an unfounded suspicion of conversions from Islam to Christianity is enough to arouse the ire of the fundamentalists. “In May 2003 — says the activist — a Catholic nun was killed by a grenade thrown by some extremists near the main entrance of the school of the convent of St Luke. The assault was a result of threats made against Christians by militant groups after hearing reports of conversions to Christianity. In March 2008, Peerzada Shakeel, a convert from Islam to Christianity was arrested along with his wife Arifa on false charges of forced conversions. In February 2011, Islamic militants set fire to the convent school of St. Luke, in Srinagar, Kashmir. Again the attack was triggered by false accusations of alleged conversions. “
For his part, Khanna has denied the charges against him and his church: “We are a local church, which does not get outside financing. We depend on the offers of local people who come here in search of spiritual comfort . So we tell them that they must support the church financially. “ The pastor said that the Mufti had recently lobbied to admit some students into the Tyndale Biscoe school, but had been invited to submit a request to the principal. Khanna says that Bashir-ud-din was annoyed by the response.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Indonesia: Java: Muslim Violence Against Statues of Other Religions
A radical Muslim group, the Islamic Defender Front (FPI), launches an appeal for the destruction of “un-Islamic” statues, like Chinese dragons, representations of the Buddha or Christian icons if they are in public places rather than in places of worship.
Jakarta (AsiaNews) — The Islamic Defender Front (FPI) launched an appeal on its website on 29 September 2011 with an order to destroy all “un-Islamic” statues in the country, above all those in public places. FPI members were asked to take a stance against the making of statues that Islam does not approve. The request to reject un-Islamic statues was extended to other Indonesian Muslim groups.
The appeal follows a controversy in Purwakarta (West Java) where hundreds of hard-line Muslims destroyed puppet statues representing mythological figures used in traditional theatre in the city’s downtown.
Purwakarta mayor had offered the puppets used in traditional theatre to represent a more “native” Indonesian identity. However, for Muslim fundamentalists, the puppet statues were “religiously wrong”. On 18 September, hundreds of Muslims destroyed a number of them (see Mathias Hariyadi, “Islamic fundamentalists in Java target puppet statues,” in AsiaNews, 20 September 2011).
The FPI also denounced the existence of several “profane” statues, like a big dragon in Singkawang, in West Borneo Province, and a statue of Buddha in Tanjung Balai, North Sumatra, which are still standing despite the hostility of Muslim radicals.
“The statue of the big dragon in Singkawang is a form of evil provocation performed by locals of Chinese descent,” the FPI said in its statement.
Singkawang is about 100 km north of Pontianak, the capital of West Borneo, and has a long-established Chinese community. Despite the presence of indigenous Christian Dayaks and Melayu Muslims, the Chinese are in fact a majority in the city.
This year, Muslims destroyed three statues of Our Lady in Bekasi, West Jav. Still, the FPI said that it would not destroy Catholic statues of Jesus or the Virgin as long as they are kept inside churches. The same goes for Buddhist statues in temples. However, “if they are placed elsewhere, especially in public places, they are to be considered an evil provocation and the state should take action,” its statement read.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Indonesia: Nationalist Party Censors “Anti-Christian” Bogor Mayor Over Yasmin Church
PDIP leaders threaten non-confidence motion against Diani Budiarto, the Bogor mayor who has denied religious freedom despite a Constitution Court ruling. He has violated the law and rejected Indonesia’s founding principles of Pancasila. For political analysts, the decision represents a major “turning point”.
Jakarta (AsiaNews) — The nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (Partai Demokrasi Indonesia Perjuangan or PDIP) has withdrawn its support from the administration of Diani Budiarto, mayor of the city of Bogor, because of his refusal to implement a decision by the Constitutional Court protecting the right of the members of the Yasmin Church to worship freely. For PDIP leaders, the mayor “violated” the law by not respecting a ruling by the highest court in the land, which set the terms that allow Protestants to build their own church in Bogor, West Java. The party does not exclude a vote of no confidence against Budiarto in the local legislative body.
Hamka Haw, head of the PDIP’s Religious Affairs Commission, said that Diani Budiarto violated the constitution and abused the rights of the members of the Yasmin Church who had won their case in court and had a permit to practice their faith.
For PDIP Deputy General Secretary Ahmad Basarah, the decision to withdraw support from the mayor, seen by political commentators as a “turning point”, is a sign of “responsibility and commitment to protect and defend Pancasila, our constitution of 1945,” which draws inspiration from the notion that the unity of Indonesia is based on the principle of “unity in diversity.”
For months, the Yasmin Protestant Church was the victim of Bogor mayor, Diani Budiarto, who had openly violated the principle of freedom of religion and denied its members the right to worship.
Despite the principles enshrined in the constitution and a sentence by the Constitutional Court in favour of the Church, the mayor systematically prevented worshippers from holding their services in their place of worship, which they had built in accordance with a duly issued construction permit.
On 9 October, the mayor sent security forces against the members of the congregation after they gathered for the Sunday service. Clashes between agents and parishioners gave him the opportunity to warn the Christians that he would deny them (pictured) access to the streets around the building to prevent them from praying outside.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Malaysia: Obedient Wives Islamic Sex Manual Banned
Kuala Lumpur, 3 Nov. (AKI) — Malaysia has banned a book by a controversial group that advocates group sex and says wives should act like hookers to spice up the marriage.
A group known as the Obedient Wives’ Club will no longer be able to publish the book “Islamic Sex” which was a kind of manual intended to be read only by members.
Abdul Aziz, a high-ranking official in the Home Ministry’s censure division, was cited by the Malaysia Star newspaper as saying the book would be banned both because its content infringed censorship laws.
The ban slaps the equivalent of a $1,600 fine and up to three years in jail for anybody who publishes the book.
The Obedient Wives’ Club is associated with the prohibited al-Arqam religious sect.
The club had previously encouraged members’ wives to behave like “high-class prostitutes” to keep other women from sharing a bed with their spouse.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
The African Population Disaster
By Gwynne Dyer
According to the United Nations, the world’s population will pass the seven billion mark at the end of this month, and there will be much tutting and shaking of heads over its prediction that we will be ten million by the end of the century. But almost nobody will have the temerity to point out that this is almost entirely an African problem.
The United Nations Population Fund’s own numbers tell the story. Africa currently has one-seventh of the world’s people: just over one billion. But during the rest of the century, the UN agency predicts, this single continent will add an extra 2.6 billion people, more than tripling in population, while all the rest of the world adds just half a billion.
If it weren’t for the African population boom, the world’s population would never exceed 7.5 billion. That is still probably twice as many people as the planet’s resources could support comfortably for more than a couple of generations — but birth rates are falling to below replacement level in most places. If that were happening in Africa too, the global population could be headed back down well before 2100. It isn’t happening in Africa, or at least not nearly fast enough.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
German Turks Struggle to Find Their Identity
The first Turkish ‘guest workers’ arrived in West Germany 50 years ago. Like other immigrants, they’ve had children and grandchildren since then. But large segments of younger generations are struggling to find their place in Germany, where they are hampered by a lack of education and prospects for the future.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Immigrants Blamed for Tuberculosis Increase
A BOOM in immigration has sent cases of tuberculosis across Scotland soaring to a 10-year high, it emerged yesterday.
Official figures showed levels of the lung disease at their highest in a decade with a 44 per cent increase from 351 in 2001 to 506 last year, including 42 deaths.
Immigration has been blamed for the rise. The statistics, published yesterday by public health body Health Protection Scotland (HPS), also revealed that the number of TB cases attributed to immigrants has rocketed by 287 per cent since 2001.
| — Hat tip: Kitman | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: Bishops Call for Vote Against Pro-Abortion Parties
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, NOVEMBER 3 — Ahead of the country’s general election on November 20, Spain’s National Conference of Bishops (CEE) has called on electors not to support parties defending abortion, euthanasia or homosexual marriage. The intervention by bishops, which was reported today by the progressive newspaper Publico, follows the document circulated by the CEE on October 21, which urged Catholic electors “not to vote for parties that support legal systems that do not recognise marriage as the union between a man and a woman, prescribed for the good of spouses and of children”. Presenting the document, the spokesperson for the bishops, Juan Antonio Martinez Camino, warned against the “risk of certain legislative options, which do not adequately protect the fundamental right to life of all human beings, from their conception to their natural death, or that do not succeed in treating as a right what is in fact an attack on the right to life”. In terms of the economic crisis, Spanish bishops are demanding responsible social and economic policies that promote the dignity of people and that “favour the work of all”. With regard to ETA and the declaration that violence will be abandoned, a move greeted enthusiastically by the Basque pro-independence left, the CEE says that “a society wanting to be free and fair cannot recognise, implicitly or explicitly, a terrorist organisation as a political representative in any section of the population, given that terrorism is an intrinsically perverse practice and one that is quite incompatible with the a just and reasonable vision of life”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Alien Bright Lights, Big City Could Reveal ET
Extraterrestrial civilisations could give themselves away by the night-time glow of their cities. And if there is one lurking in the outer reaches of our solar system, we are ready to find it. Existing telescopes could spot cities the size of Tokyo out to the edge of the solar system, and future telescopes could detect well-lit planets around other stars, a new study suggests. “This opens a new window for a search for extraterrestrial civilisations,” says Avi Loeb of Harvard University.
The mainstream search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI), now running for more than 50 years, relies on the hope that aliens will either leak or broadcast radio signals out into space.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Festival of Sacrifice With ‘Mutton.Com’
(ANSAmed) — TUNIS, NOVEMBER 3 — Millions of muttons will die before the end of next week in North Africa and in the rest of the Arab world. They will be slaughtered to celebrate the Eid, the “Festival of the Sacrifice”. Eid is one of the most popular festivals in the Muslim world: in the Internet era, the festival also turned into an extremely profitable business. All families (or, more precisely, those who can actually afford it: in Tunisia, prices amount to 350/400 dinars for each mutton, nearly an employee’s entire monthly wage) are now rushing to buy the best muttons and sheep to “sacrifice” using the traditional method, that is, by cutting the animal’s throat with a single slash while watching the Mecca. Eid and the purchase of muttons are the most debated issues in Muslim families and at work. For the next few days, the debate over serious issues such as the future of North Africa countries, the “Arab spring”, revolutions and wars will be postponed. Especially in the suburbs of large cities, cattle breeders are everywhere, showing the muttons and sheep they brought from the countryside and waiting for the clients to buy the animals and bring them home, after wearing negotiations.
Every place can become a market: sidewalks, a car-box, city squares. This is an event occurring year after year, and some large-scale retail trade companies, such as Carrefour Tunisia, have organized some fenced areas for the sale of muttons in the supermarkets’ parking areas. Children can’t wait for the day the mutton is finally bought: it is considered both a recreational moment and an opportunity to grow inside the family. In 2011, due to political climate and elections (elections have already taken place in Tunisia and are about to take place in Morocco) there was an upswing in prices of Eid meat all over North Africa. However, a new actor made its triumphant entry on the muttons market: the Internet. People trade Eid food on the net, thus generating what some people humorously call “mutton.com”.
Trade on the net is a little bit different from traditional TV sales, because Internet “mutton operators” act as “brokers”: they do not have their own storage facilities, they are an intermediate stage between cattle breeders and clients. Truth to tell, clients do not save a lot of money and sellers do not really make huge profits; however, in this way it is possible to save time. Indeed, you can examine the animals on the Internet and, if you are happy with it, you buy it and the only thing you have to do is to pick it up; sometimes, the mutton is delivered to you directly at home. Some TV sellers were actually a little bit concerned about this new selling method, thus considering it something a little bit “weird” if you take into account the strong connection between the Arab and tradition. However, the outcome was positive and those who started to use the net last year (the idea originally came form Morocco) decided to do it once again this year. If you take into account that millions of muttons (without considering sheep and heifers) have their throat cut each year all over North Africa, the market is huge and it has a huge potential for profits.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
The Real You: Say Goodbye to Online Anonymity
Online anonymity may be a luxury we can no longer afford — and it’s disappearing fast anyway. Are we ready to bare all on the internet? Orlando Figes, one of the UK’s most eminent historians, admitted posting savage critiques of rivals’ books on the Amazon website under the pseudonym “Historian” — alongside praise of his own. His eventual confession came only after he had threatened to take legal action against anyone who accused him of the misdeed. Later he blamed his wife for the reviews.
Figes’s online behaviour is an example of what’s known as sock puppetry — pretending to be someone other than who you are for the sake of furthering your own interests. It made for a juicy academic scandal that in the end hurt him more than anyone else, but the consequences of the internet’s ability to cloak users’ identities aren’t always so confined. Vicious cyberbullying has, in extreme cases, driven victims to suicide. Scammers and spammers can hijack email addresses to steal banking credentials and even state secrets. Earlier this year, for example, a convincing email fooled several senior US government officials into handing over their email passwords to hackers. For all the benefits that the internet has brought us, it often remains a deeply uncivilised place.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
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