According to the daily De Volkskrant, the referendum has changed nothing in Bolivia's political and social landscape. "The referendum did nothing to diminish the gap between the rich east and the poor west. There is no doubt that resistance in the provinces inhabited predominantly by whites is fanned by racist feelings and resentment at having lost power to the first indigenous president. This must be condemned. But that does not relieve Morales of the duty to reach an understanding with the opposition and prevent a further split in the country. ... Morales' election is of historical importance for the emancipation of the long-oppressed indigenous population. But to secure sustainable progress he must above all show he is president of all Bolivians." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Domestic Policy, » Social Policy / Employment, » Latin Amerika

The conservative newspaper La Razón calls Bolivian President Evo Morales' referendum victory a setback for his country and the entire region: "After the votes were counted Morales spoke of dialogue and reconciliation. But these words were negated shortly thereafter when with the battle cry 'fatherland or death, we shall win' he announced he would continue with his policy of nationalisation and the new communist constitution, which had led to the current conflict in the first place. This personal victory for Morales is a major setback for Bolivia and Latin America. He breathes new life into totalitarian, Castro-like populism, and is barring the path of his impoverished society to democratic progress." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Economic Policy, » Latin Amerika

According to Der Standard newspaper a major political confrontation is looming in Bolivia: "Bolivia's left-wing president Evo Morales wanted to clarify the situation. The referendum was to decide whether he himself and the far-right leaders of four provinces that had rebelled against him should stay in office. Now both sides have won and it seems likely that the conflict will escalate. ... Morales ... appears ... to regard an election victory as authorisation to completely reform the country. The goal of eradicating poverty is commendable, but it is a sign of lacking realism when a president provokes the hostility of a large proportion of the population instead of seeking a compromise. In countries like Bolivia the army is always prepared to step in as highest authority when a compromise is not reached." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Social Policy / Employment, » Latin Amerika
All available articles from » Erhard Stackl

With two electoral winners, Bolivia is the real loser, argues Die Welt: "The cleft in society threatened to widen even before the referendum. Since the weekend it has only grown. And yet none of this is necessary, because Bolivia is by no means a poor country. Twice as large as France and rich in raw materials and fertile soil, it can easily provide a good living to all of its ten million inhabitants. And there have been many examples of how left-wing governments can bring a successful business climate to the region. One need only cite Bolivia's neighbor Brazil. However people in La Paz prefer to look to Caracas and copy Hugo Chavez' '21st century socialism'. But that not only scares off foreign investors, it also frightens the middle classes in the east of the country. They then indulge in isolationism, which can only lead to an impasse. So on the weekend there may have been political victors, but there was also one loser: Bolivia!" (12/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Hildegard Stausberg

French President and current EU President Nicolas Sarkozy plans to mediate in the conflict between Russia and Georgia today. The Spanish daily El Mundo advises the EU to assume a more active role in the crisis region. "Europe is particularly interested in a [peaceful] resolution to the conflict because it finds the idea that what happened in the Balkans could be repeated in the Caucasus extremely alarming. Moreover, a substantial proportion of our energy supplies flow through Georgia. ... The credibility of our Western defence alliance is at stake here because the negotiations with Tiflis on joining Nato have reached an advanced stage. We should not abandon Georgia ... to its fate. ... The EU has the option of breaking off the negotiations on trade relations which are so important for the Kremlin. ... However, it remains to be seen whether the EU is capable of implementing such a unified and tough strategy." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » EU Policy, » Russia, » Georgian Republic

The Dalai Lama arrived in France yesterday for a twelve-day visit. Raphaël Liogier, director of the research institute Observatoire du Religieux, analyses in this context the Western enthusiasm for Buddhism: "The traditional Buddhism of Southeast Asia came to France with successive waves of migrants but is not being practised by the younger generation. Thanks to the global influence of the Dalai Lama [however], Western Buddhism, which emerged from Tibetan Buddhism, is growing. .. The Dalai Lama has managed to [globalise] the Tibetan cause. Ultimately he has created a spiritual Tibet, whose new citizens are Buddhists from all over the world. That is what his predecessors were lacking. ... Nowadays there may be a certain aversion to making political use of events. But this Dalai Lama ... has managed to combine politics and spirituality. ... His is a new political message which transcends the borders of the nation state and is anchored in the Buddhist tradition." (11/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Raphaël Liogier

The Polish government has dismissed Under-Secretary Witold Waszczykowski, Poland's chief negotiator on the US missile defence shield. According to rumours his sacking came after a controversial interview with the news magazine Newsweek Polska. The liberal left daily Gazeta Wyborcza welcomes his dismissal: "The negotiations on the defence shield are still underway yet Witold Waszczykowski accuses the Polish government of pursuing only partisan interests in its talks with the US and neglecting Poland's security. This is absolutely scandalous: a high-ranking government official telling the US that Poland cannot be taken seriously as a negotiating partner. ... Waszczykowski gave the US arguments that will make it determined not to make any concessions regarding the defence shield in Poland. He has reignited the [Polish] conflict between the president and the government. He has proven that he is unfit for government office in Poland." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Domestic Policy, » Poland, » U.S.
All available articles from » Marek Beylin

Brussels has changed its opinion regarding Bulgaria's willingness to reform, the daily Sega writes, with reference to the harsh sanctions imposed on the new member state owing to corruption. Now, the newspaper reports, the "safeguard clause" which would restrict Bulgaria's membership status could be applied: "Just a year ago the Bulgarian government was being praised for its will to reform and its resoluteness. How can Brussels change its mind so radically within a year? The truth is that Brussels is one step away from making the important discovery that the judiciary does not work against but as part of organised crime. ... The European Commission's next progress report will not confine itself to listing the shortcomings; it will have to name the reasons behind them. ... And when this happens the Commission will have no alternative but to apply the safeguard clause." (12/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Svetoslav Tersiev

Chris Patten, former EU Commissioner for foreign relations, analyses in the daily Helsingin Sanomat the effect a non-adoption of the Treaty of Lisbon would have on crisis management of the EU: "It is too often forgotten in the debate over the Treaty of Lisbon what the proposed changes would mean for the most important tasks facing the EU beyond its borders. ... In an attempt to stabilise and reconstruct, ... the EU has provided important military assistance ... in a number of problem zones. ... Perhaps the biggest success in recent history is the common foreign and security policy regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina. ... Of course, each of these operations also had its weaknesses. ... Above all, critics are right to condemn institutional sluggishness and inefficiency. ... The Treaty of Lisbon ... would in part solve these problems. ... As a legal entity, the EU could act on behalf of its member states. ... Procedures would be sped up by broadening the scope of qualified majority decisions. ... At the same time the Treaty would facilitate the prevention and settlement of conflicts - that means [more] lives would be saved. ... It would be extremely regretable for the process to come to a halt now." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » EU Policy, » EU Constitution, » Europe

In the Hungarian weekly Élet és Irodalom political expert Petronella Eszter Soós comments on French President Nicolas Sarkozy's foreign policy and the role of France in the EU. "During both the De Gaulle era and the times of Jacques Chirac, European integration and French-American relations were often interpreted on an either/or basis. There can be no talk of this under Nicolas Sarkozy. In contrast to Chirac, Sarkozy is acting very openly towards the US because in his eyes good relations between the two states are strategically important. ... According to Sarkozy, weakening the US would be a short-sighted policy. ... Consequently Sarkozy is often described as an advocate of Atlantism. This is an overstatement. It would perhaps be more fitting to describe him as a friend of America's. ... In the Sarkozy era, the pragmatic Gaullist stance, according to which France has its own interests and defends them tooth and nail on the international stage, lives on. Sarkozy has never deviated from this standpoint. ... However Sarkozy has come to the conclusion that France's interests are best represented within the framework of the EU. This is why he is taking France's EU presidency so seriously." (12/08/2008)

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All available articles from » Eszter Petronella Soós

So far the conflict in the Caucasus has had little impact on the price of oil. According to the Financial Times Deutschland, it is down due to economic trends. "Just imagine, there is a war - but oil prices have barely registered it. ... Reactions to the crisis in Georgia so far show just how much the mood has changed on the raw materials markets: the price of crude oil went up ... slightly but the movement remained nothing more than a technical correction following the dramatic price drop of the last few weeks. If the market was hungry for arguments to increase the price, the conflicts in the Caucasus would have immediately catapulted the quotations upwards. ... During the period of wild speculation in the first half of the year the slightest rumour of unrest in Nigeria or mishaps in Venezuela caused prices to fluctuate dramatically. ... If the crisis in the Caucasus spreads and oil supplies are seriously endangered this will not fail to have an impact on the market. But the first moderate price reactions demonstrate that the downwards trend of the past few weeks is pretty robust." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Energy Policy, » Trade, » Russia, » Global, » Georgian Republic

All across Europe people are on holidays, but if they fail to intensify their working rhythm Europe will lose the race against China and India, the weekly Expresso warns: "It is impressive to see an entire continent go on holiday. The problem is that the rest of the world is not taking holidays and will not wait for Europe to resume work in September. While the Europeans sun themselves Korean engineers and Indian computer experts continue to work. When Europeans return to work they will find that they have lost customers. Understandably, the latter are not prepared to wait a month. ... In view of this situation Europeans are talking of an economic crisis, but there is no crisis. The truth is that the rest of the world has started to work seriously and compete with Europe. The current European lifestyle (a job for life, payment of 14 months' salaries for eleven months of work and long summer holidays which paralyse the country) has its roots in the time after the Second World War. This comfortable lifestyle was possible because Europe had no rivals. ... Today China and India are penetrating the European market. Our lifestyle no longer fits in with this world, which is dictated by the aggressive competitiveness of these two powers. ... Europe must realise that it needs to adopt a more intense working rhythm. ... Do Europeans want holidays or do they want power?" (11/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Social Policy / Employment, » Tourism, » Asia, » Europe, » Global
All available articles from » Henrique Raposo

Le Figaro analyses the role of the European Central Bank (ECB) in the global economic crisis. "If you are looking for further evidence that the state of the French economy is worsening by the day, you will find it in the spectacular drop in industrial production in the second quarter. ... France, and in fact the whole of Europe, is on the brink of a recession. The Americans, forced to their knees when the real estate bubble burst, have exported their ills to other economies. ... At this time when French industry is balancing its accounts, it is difficult to conceal the perverse effects of the strong euro. ... The currency market is no drunken ship at the mercy of international moneyed interests. It also depends on the monetary policy of ... the central banks. But as growth sinks and European industry struggles to cope with the euro exchange rate, the ECB must face up to its responsibility." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Financial Markets, » France, » Europe
All available articles from » Gaëtan de Capèle

Random House publishers have decided not to publish the novel "Jewel of Medina" about the six-year-old wife of the prophet Muhammad, on the grounds that it "might be offensive to some in the Muslim community". Columnist Mike Hume voices his disgruntlement in The Times: "It looks like another example of a quiet wave of self-censorship and cultural cowardice sweeping Western art circles. Two years ago, when the Deutsche opera in Berlin scrapped a production of Mozart's Idomeneo for fear that it might offend some Muslims, I described it as 'pre-emptive grovelling'. This now appears to be the modus operandi of the transatlantic arts elites. ... The threat to freedom here does not come from a few Islamic radicals, but from the invertebrate liberals of the cultural establishment who have so lost faith in themselves that they will surrender their freedoms before anybody starts a fight. ... Of course, such pre-emptive grovelling only encourages any zealot with a blog to demand even more censorship. ... Pre-emptive grovelling, encouraged from the top down by our illiberal authorities, is bad for the arts and for society. The arts can only flourish in a climate of cultural anarchy rather than compulsion and conformity." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Literature, » Publishing houses, » Religion, » Global
All available articles from » Mick Hume

Licence fees cover the costs of broadcasting state television and radio in Denmark, but according to the daily Jyllands-Posten the money is being wasted: "There was a time when television and radio were made for viewers and listeners but nowadays viewers simply contribute to legitimating programmes with an increasingly populist content. The transmitter of cultural values has become a thief of time," journalist Carsten Fischer writes. He recalls the times when Danish television was "inspiring, activating, enriching and dangerous", with good "scientific, artistic and educational programmes". But those times are gone, he writes: "Big words, a lot of propaganda, empty phrases and cold shoulders. ... DR [the main state channel] has neglected its most important task: to reaffirm the Danish language and culture. The majority of this product that costs 3.3 billion crowns to provide can be viewed on the commercial channels for free - so there is no need to pay DR for these programmes. ... DR has forfeited its right to charge license fees." (12/08/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Audiovisual Media, » Media policy, » Denmark