October 2005
October 21, 2005
Ukrainian press and free speech
Freedom of speech is base of democracy. But not every country is born with this notion like America. Right now Ukraine challenges the concepts of democracy by establishing the norms of free speech.
Belarus cracks down on opposition
Even people who know about Orange Revolution in Ukraine sometimes do not realize that it was just one of the many. SOme revolutions already happened (Ukraine, Georgia,...), some are on their way.
Yushchenko wins Chatham House prize
Not the Nobel Prize this time, but still a really cool award for bringing about a peaceful revolution in Ukraine. President Viktor Yuschenko recieved this prize from the Queen of England!
For this issue, here are a couple of articles about Mongolian culture and traditions. The first discusses current changes in Mongolian society as well as the beauty of the land and the people. It also has a wonderful section on the life of country's nomadic herders.
The second article looks at the images of fire and of sky, and their importance in Mongolian folklore. This is a very good article, especially for those interested in mythology and folklore.
Thinking of visiting Kenya?
Read this and you'll get more idea of why you need to.
Water Rights
Has the Nile ever been controversial? Well, it is a historical river, no doubt. But now it's threatening to be politically controversial.
Cherono wins Beijing Marathon
A Kenyan runner wins a marathon in an ill-fated race. One local man dies in the process.
Hi Folks,
I am Vaibhav. For those of you who have managed to read so far, I am from Mumbai, India and I am studying at the Business School. So if you ever want to have a good chat, feel free to e-mail me. What I appreciate most is a smile.
India is the seventh largest country & is just behind China in its population (though not something we want to catch up on). India is a diverse country with numerous cultures co-existing and about 850 languages in daily use. It is a travelers delight and people of India are generally friendly and peace loving.
India was under the British rule for about 200 years which drained a lot of resources of the country. It has been free since 1947. It has fascinating mythologies and many Gods, religion and ethnicities. For those who know Buddha, he was born in India and traveled east to preach his teachings.
Today, India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the East, leading the Service sector while China is capitalizing on the Manufacturing sector. I reckon that Asia has the potential to be the future hub of all trade, so if you like to travel, that's where you want to be.
See you next time.
Hello!
This is an incredible article on the trial of Saddam Hussein. It is a bit old, in that the trial has already started, but the additional information the article gives is more than worth it, I promise! The newspaper Spiegel, as always, has done a very thorough job of reporting, and the perspectives it contains are very valuable, I think.
Hello!
My name is Pierre. I am from France and I am going to stay at Willamette for one year. This is my first time in the United States, and so far, I really enjoy it. I am 20 and I am studying English (of course), Spanish, Chinese, and International Politics. As you will have noticed, I am learning several languages but I love it. As a matter of fact, if I could, I would also learn Japanese. I like learning about other cultures and it is fantastic that we can find many people from different countries in Willamette! That is why World Views is a good thing; we can talk with people from other countries and learn about them.
My country is very beautiful I think. It has different kinds of landscape: the beaches, the mountains, the cities, the countryside and the villages. I come from the South of France (Montpellier) and it is very nice there because the weather is warm, it is a very cosmopolitan city and the beach is not very far. France is very important in Europe because it is one of the countries that signed the Rome Treaty in 1957 to create the EEC (Economic European Community) which became later the EU (European Union); thus, France is one of the founding countries of the EU. It plays a big role in the foreign policy because it is the second economic might in Europe. For example, when France said "no" to the European constitution, Netherlands followed them even though for France it was more a vote against the domestic policy. But anyways, living in France is very good because Paris is a beautiful city (though there are other good places elsewhere), the food is the best in the world and the history of France is huge!!!
Hi everyone,
I▓m Marianne Fernandez and although my name seems to indicate that I am Spanish, I▓m from France┘but I do have Spanish origins. I▓m 24 and I will be the French assistant at Willamette this year. I come from Grenoble which is a town of approximately 250,000 inhabitants. It is situated in a valley surrounded by mountains (the Alps) and it is well known for having great places where you can go hiking or skiing in winter. After a hard day of skiing, usually people have a nice dinner and they eat ⌠une fondue■ or ⌠une raclette■ (yes, food is very important for us) and have a glass of white wine (yes, that too, is a big part of our culture)┘that▓s typical of my region.
In 2002, I graduated in English so I studied English and American literature, civilization, linguistics, phonetics and translation. I have also studied Spanish for 7 years (but I forgot everything) and Italian for 1 year (but I also forgot everything) so I guess it▓s useless for me to start learning Japanese! I have been studying in Grenoble this whole time and this is my first time in the US which is so far a very good experience. Before coming, I wasn▓t expecting to meet so many great people, and this is only the beginning!!!
Now, for some news:
It▓s a bad time for Coluche▓s "restos du coeur"
In 1986, thanks to Coluche▓s appeal, the European commission created the ⌠Plan European d▓Aide aux plus Demunis■ (PEAD) to help poor people. This year, the budget for PEAD has to be shared with 25 countries instead of 15. As a result, ⌠les restos du Coeur■ will see its budget threatened. Every winter, more than half a million of people need the meals that Coluche▓s charity provides┘
Hi,
I'm Gabriela Cardenas, from Ecuador. I was born in Quito, the capital of the country. I'm 19 years old and at the moment I'm staying in Salem attending at WU as an exchange student. In Quito I study in the USFQ (Universidad San Francisco de Quito), right now i'm a junior and I'm planing to get a major in Advertising and a minor in film production. Hopefully in the future i'll go to Germany or to Argentina to get a master
in film studies. I speak only two languages, obviously English and Spanish, i tried to learn some Italian, French and German... so I can catch a couple of words but not more than that.
I have traveled around a few countries in europe, through Colombia, and my own country; each one has a different characteristic that makes it beautiful. In the case of Ecuador, it is definitely the people and the facility of travelling inside the country; it is so small that it is possible to be at the beach on Saturday and on a mountain on Sunday.. which i don't recommend. If you go to Ecuador, you have to visit the beaches and the Amazon, the lakes...something amazing. For more information, you can reach the travel addict...Gabriela Cardenas.
Continue reading "Gabriela Cardenas"
Hi everyone!
I am Susana Gomez, from Quito, Ecuador. I came to Willamette because of its writing program. In Quito, I study journalism and Creative Writing. I enjoy thinking of life as of meanings and people▓s ways to convey them. No wonder I am glad to be writing for World News from the beginning of my experience in the US!!!
One of the first things that astonished me when I got here was to see the sun setting at 8 p.m. during the summer. That made me think of Quito a lot. I missed the security that the sun would be gone by 6 p.m., and even missed the maddening changes of the weather during the day: sun in the morning, wind at noon and rain in the afternoon, all four seasons in the same day. But I realized Salem has its own charm. The yellowish leafs on the balcony of my room in Kaneko Hall suggest to me everyday that this city has a constant, stable peace I have not yet been able to define. And the deafening whistling of the train in my ears wake me up every morning, willing to see a new bit of a city that, I hope, will not feel strange for very long.
I will keep you informed of what is happening in my country, which means that I will try to show as many different aspects of people▓s ways of being as I can think of. And to start right away, for those of you who have some knowledge of Spanish and are interested in good Ecuadorian literature, visit Domingo Siete, a site that everybody deserves to know. Enjoy!
Now some news:
Former Ecuadorian President gets political asylum
Former Ecuadorian President Lucio Gutierrez gets political asylum in Colombia, after having been removed from the Presidency in April by the Ecuadorian Congress during a week of manifestations and protests against him. Gutierrez is formally accused of corruption and risking the democracy in Ecuador, and the support of Colombia -a neighbor country- raises critics among Ecuadorian authorities, who state that Gutierrez should return to Ecuador to be judged. This link provides the reactions of the current Ecuadorian President and other public figures towards Colombia▓s acceptance of Gutierrez.
For further detail on Gutierrez's government and the reasons for his destitution, see this link, totally written in English.
Hello everyone,
My name is Eric Yunxing Peng, from Harbin, China. My family immigrated to Canada when I was 18. My undergraduate degree is BA in Economics and BS in Computer Science from the University of Calgary (www.ucalgary.ca). I am currently studying MBA at the Atkinson business school at Willamette University.
This is my year of MBA study, so I am new to this school and this beautiful city. I am looking forward to having a great study and life experience here in Salem.
I▓d like to help ▒the Willamette World News▓ cover some of the interesting news from China and Canada. My study at the Atkinson is very intense; however, I will try my best to put up wonderful news for people who are interested in China or Canada. I hope everyone enjoys our newspaper as much as we do.
And now, some news...
Best Place to Live
The most recent survey done by EIU (Economist Intelligence Unit) regarding ▒the best place to live▓ has the following result based on 12 factors grouped in three categories: health and safety; culture and environment; and infrastructure:
Vancouver #1 (Canada), Toronto #9 (Canada), Calgary #10(Canada, oh yeah, that▓s where I had lived for 7 years before coming to Salem). No surprise there, I guess.
The survey said Honolulu is the best place to live in the United States due to its climate, good housing stock, low crime risk, and availability of recreational activities. The city ranked 21 overall.
Beijing (China) and Shanghai(China) tied for #70. Wow, that▓s a pleasant surprise. I am happy that two major cities from China made it to the list.
Drop the Puck! Hockey is back
NHL (National Hockey League) is back! After one year of negotiation, the players association finally reached an agreement with the owners. Now it▓s time for some hockey! Go Flames Go!
$400 for free?! You Bet
Premier Ralph Klein announced on Sept.20 that each Albertan will receive a $400 cheque from the oil-rich province's unbudgeted surplus, generated by soaring energy prices.
This is a great news for most Albertans. For my family, that▓ll be $1200 for my son, my wife and I. In case you are wondering where Alberta is, it is a province that is North of the state Nevada, East of the Province British Columbia. The population is 3.3million roughly by 2005. If you▓d like to know about Alberta, you could also check the website.
October 07, 2005
It’s been a while since the last publication and a lot has happened in the Republic of Zimbabwe since then. What caused a lot of uproar all over the world was when the government destroyed what it called "illegal residences" and "slums," which left nearly a thousand people without shelter. A UN envoy was sent out to Zimbabwe to assess the situation and later produced a report which condemned the government’s action as horrific human rights abuses.
And to continue in the same trend of nothing good happening in Zimbabwe, the army has been sending soldiers on “forced leave” because it could not provide them with food. About half the population is facing starvation, and with rampant shortages most of the basic commodities must be found on the black market.
And I guess the happier news is that the country has made interest payments on its IMF debt. The first payment was made last month after the IMF threatened to throw the country out of the organization.
And on the continent of Africa, a white South African farmer was sentenced to life in prison for killing a black worker and feeding him to the lions. It’s so disappointing to hear things like this happening after what people have gone through to mend the racial tensions on the continent.
Lastly and unfortunately on race, is what has been happening in this beloved “land of the brave and the free.” The statement by former Education Secretary William Bennett for hypothesizing that, “aborting every black child would reduce the crime rate in the United States.” Wow. I don’t think I have any response to that, I’m just appalled. If educated men can make such comments, I wonder how destructive education can be.
Hey!
The daughter of a former Prime Minister of Ukraine has wedded a british heavy metal star. I don't think Bush's kid would do that!
To begin this year, here are some facts about Ukraine, from the BBC and the Economist websites:
And for those wondering, "where is Ukraine, anyhow?" here is a map of Ukraine:
Ukraine told that EU door is open
The European Union is expanding. In 2004, ten new members joined the EU; some of these countries are located in Eastern Europe and have experienced the collapse of communism. Ukraine is located in the Eastern Europe and used to be a part of the Soviet Union until 1991. As other countries, Ukraine is not yet eligible to be a member of the EU.
Does Ukraine have a future in the European Union? It might have a chance to become a member of the EU and today it is working towards integration with the EU. However, it will take time. One of the most important goals is to ⌠raise the level of economic competitiveness.■
Two presidents meet over issues of autonomy
The Spanish territory is divided in seventeen zones called autonomous regions (⌠comunidades autonomas■) and two autonomous towns, Ceuta and Melilla which are situated on the North of Africa. The Spanish Constitution was approved by referendum on December 6th 1978 and is valid for the whole country, but each autonomous region has certain exclusives competences which are not administrated by the national government in Madrid.
For instance, regions are liable for some cases happened in the part of the sea which covers up to twelve miles away from its coast, but between 12 and 200 miles the national government has the whole responsibility. That is why, in the same way, each autonomous region owns its ⌠Estatuto de Autonomia■.
The present regional government of Cataluсa, one of the regions located in the North-East corner, has drawn up a draft reform of its ⌠Estatuto■ that must be approved in Madrid to get on. This article is about the meeting between Pascual Maragall, president of Cataluсa, and Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, president of Spain. Maragall has been in that post for almost one year and ten months (in the last elections he defeated Jordi Pujol, who had been president for more than twenty-three years). On the other side Zapatero got La Moncloa, the residence where presidents and his family usually live, in March 14th 2004 (three days after the most serious terrorist attack ever suffered in the country).
Both of them are members of Partido Socialista Obrero Espaсol (PSOE), the most voted left-wing party. It is expected that on November 2nd the public debate about this reform will take place in the Chamber of Deputies (Congreso de los Diputados), where two hundred and fifty politicians elected each four years discuss and decide about important issues. It is supposed that Partido Popular (PP), main opposition right-wing party headed by Mariano Rajoy, votes against such draft.
Continue reading "Jaime Mata Miguez"
For this issue, here are several links to Mongolian online newspapers and resources. Hopefully these sites will give you a basic understanding of life in Mongolia. Consider it a broad beginning to this year's reporting. Mongolia is a very exciting place, with numerous developments occurring all the time; you will surely find many fascinating things!
Newspapers
The UB Post newspaper covers a broad range of topics covering all aspects of Mongolian culture, and includes many links to other Mongolian web sites. To visit this site, click here.
The Mongolian Messenger, on the other hand, covers primarily political and business news. To visit their website, click here.
Additional Resources
The Mongolian government maintains a webpage covering all of its goings-on. Read a message from the Prime Minister, look up pieces of legislation, all that can be done from this site. Click here to go to their page.
Hello! Included this week are three articles: one on sports, one on politics, and one on social life. Enjoy the news!
Kenya's Volleyball Team wins Cup of Nations
Political Leaders Stoop to Name-Calling
Hello!
For those of you who have been following the German elections of late, here is a link to an interesting article about current German domestic policy.
Turkey and the European Union
This article deals with the discussion between Turkey and the EU concerning the access for their membership. The Europe Union has again new requirements for Turkey. Since 40 years is Turkey struggling for a membership. In 1963 Turkey signed up for the economic association treaty with the access to join later the EU. In 1987 they applied first but were rejected. Nowadays they still want to get a part in EU.
Schroeder and German Elections
In this Article Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder (SPD Social Party Democrats) wants ⌠to quit if party wants■. After the elections which were over 2 weeks ago both parties got almost the same votes. They are now struggling to get the favor of the coalition. However, I do not believe that Schroeder would defer the CDU even though he said it.
U.S., German physicists win Nobel
This article describes the peak out for the German Physician Theodor Haensch and the Americans Roy Glauber und John Hall by winning the nobel prize. The research and development presents Germany in a bright light.
President Ricardo Lagos
The President of Chile is both the chief of state and the head of government. Currently, the President is elected by popular vote to serve for a period of six years, without immediate reelection. However, changes to the Constitution, enacted on Agust 26, 2005, reduced the President's mandate to four years starting in 2006, also without immediate reelection. The shorter period allows for joint parliamentary and presidential elections.
Ricardo Lagos was born in Santiago, Chile. He was the only child of Froilбn Lagos Sepъlveda (who died when he was eight years old) and Emma Escobar Morales (who passed away in April 2005 at age 108). He attended primary school at Liceo Manuel de Salas and high school at the Instituto Nacional.
In 1954, Lagos was admitted into law school at the Universidad de Chile. He took his first steps into politics between 1955 and 1959. He was chosen as student body president and gave his first speech at the same location where Salvador Allende had spoken to the president of Guatemala, Juan Jose Arevalo, just two minutes earlier.
In 1960, Lagos concluded his law studies. The title of his thesis, "The Concentration of the Economic Power," received the highest distinction and became a publishing success, with five published editions. In the paper, he discusses the existence of economic groups, which earned him an interview in Time magazine and an editorial in the newspaper La Naciуn, which called him "The Mozart of the economy".
Lagos became a lawyer and married Carmen Weber, with whom he had two children, Ricardo and Ximena. After obtaining his Ph.D, and upon returning to Chile, he annulled this marriage.
In 1969, he met Luisa Durбn de La Fuente, and they married in 1971. The couple shared the parenting of the children of Lagos' first marriage, the children of Durбn's first marriage, Hernбn and Alejandro, and their only child together, Francisca.
Bulgarian President calls Libyan President
You may have read an earlier post of mine in which I described the huge international AIDS scandal involving Bulgaria and Libya (click here for the article). Although the situation remains dire, intellectuals and civil groups from both sides of the divide are trying to establish a friendlier climate of communication in the hope of bringing this tragedy to a peaceful end.
This (brief) article documents a simple, yet powerfully symbolic step √ a phone call of congratulations. Perhaps, in our world of tense diplomacy and hostility, the simplest action can bring us closer to understanding.
Bulgarian wrestler wins Gold
There are a few things which bring Bulgarians internationally fame. Wrestling is one of them. Turkey and Bulgaria routinely win the top prizes in the Olympics. Olympic champion Armen Nazarian of Bulgaria won the gold medal Sunday in the 132-pound Greco-Roman division on the last day of the World Wrestling Championships.
After winning, he said "I want to continue because you can never have too much success.■ He has been elected to the wrestling▓s Hall of Fame.
Bulgarian mime performs to beat own Guinness record
Every single news section should have a bit of the absurd. Keeping in line with this belief, I have decided to cover the famous and powerful art of mimes.
Popular Bulgarian mime artist Alexander Iliev is set to smash his own Guinness record by staging a 26-hour performance. The mime marathon includes hundreds of different pantomime pieces, dances of Eastern European countries, clown sketches, circus acts and variety tricks, as well as dances with original national masks from the repertoire of the greatest mime masters in the world.
Amazing 6.5 / 7 by Topalov in first RR
The best Bulgarian chess player Veselin Topalov is playing the games of his life in the Chess World Championships in San Luis, Argentina. In the first half of the competition, the Bulgarian grand master won 6 of his first 7 games and drew in the other one. This is a feat no other chess player has ever been able to achieve in the history of the World Championships, which started in 1886.
Bulgaria to pull out of Iraq after December polls
The new Socialist government in Bulgaria has decided to change its plans to pull out all national troops from Iraq as early as possible. The new plan is to wait for the end of this year, which means that our troops would still be there until the end of the general elections set for December 15th, 2005.
Bulgarian Football Makes Breakthrough in Europe
The past week was full of excitement for soccer fans in Bulgaria. Three of the four club teams √ Levski Sofia, CSKA Sofia, and Litex Lovech - which reached the first round of the UEFA Cup managed to qualify for the group stages of the same competition. Not even once before had any Bulgarian soccer club team managed to reach this far in the UEFA Cup, and now we had three qualify at the same. The euphoria in the country was amazing. It even reminded me of the summer of 1994, when the national team got fourth place in the World Championships here in the United States. An interview with one of the best Bulgarian comedians shows a little bit of the excitement that followed the games.
Azerbaijan is preparing for Parliamentary elections, which will take place in November. During the election campaign there have been some violations in the country. The article brings the report of Human Rights Watch on the pre-election situation in Azerbaijan.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, which Azerbaijan was part of, one of the organizations created afterwards was GUAM, which united Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova in close cooperation in economic and political matters. A meeting of GUAM borderline services took place in Baku.
Azerbaijan is currently rapidly developing in all spheres of economy, including tourism, as this article shows. In connection with this, the Ministry of Youth and Tourism of the country submitted an action plan to the President of the country. The plan was developed in cooperation with US experts.
