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Expo : Strasbourg's Golden Age

Sunday, 27 April 2008

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Strasbourg's Golden Age : Beyond past Tragedies, "Paradise Garden" of a European Quatrocento, aspiring for a new Renaissance ?

Strasbourg's Golden Age, at the 15th Century, its "Quatrocento", is pictured mainly in 2 contrasting paintings, reveals Expo "1400" : Tragedy against Splendor : Christ's Crucification by a dominican painter, doesn't hide the atrocities of blatant cruelty. But "Paradise Garden" ("Le jardin de Paradis"), on the contrary, strikes by its beautiful, calm, intelligent, light colours, depicting the bright side of an opulent and human everyday life, among a luxurious Nature, typical of Alsace's fertility.

What relation between a so-called "Gothic" Art and the famous Italian "QuatroCento" ? From Rome to Wiena, Frankfurt, Karlsruhe, Koeln, Fribourg, Swiss Bern, and other cities, linked by rivers, lakes and seas, various artists cooperate in forging Strasbourg's original European style : It's precisely in 1423 that Strasbourg's cathedral became, for the 1st time, Europe's highest peak.

But finally, the brightest light, in sculptures and paintings, appears at a Mother's all too Human way to look after her beloved baby or child : In the way she holds it in her hands, plays together, or offers a flower out of a book's wisdom, etc. : A prefiguration of what became later Europe's Capital for Human Rights ?

The father is not far away : Astonishingly, the painters mirrored the father at the child's own face...

And may be, that's the point : Paradoxically, Strasbourg was called, then, "Argentina", from the Latin "Argentoratum", i.e. the "Silver City", as if it postponed its "Golden Age" for a Future time : Half a Millenium later, from 1400 to 2008, the exhibition looks as a symbol of a fresh wish for a new European Renaissance.


See it all (in French, oder Deutsch), from March to July 2008, at : http://www.strasbourg1400.com

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Ries wants to boost Strasbourg's role for EU Citizens

Tuesday, 08 July 2008

Strasbourg's potential for EU Citizens' links to European and PanEuropean decision-making can and must be developed, said in substance the City's Mayor in a Press Conference together with MEP Catherine Trautmann, his former collegue, t EU Parliament.

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- "I intend to work mainly along the line : "European Court of Human Rights and EU Parliament", Ries warned earlier "EuroFora", making more concrete his larger appeal "to the Peoples of Europe".

He added now the EU Ombudsman, where EU Citizens can lodge complaints against alleged violations of EU Law, and he could also extend to the Shengen system, which serves EU Citizens' right to free and secure movement, both headquarted in Strasbourg.

Meanwhile, Strasbourg's Mayor unveiled a colourful program of various events co-organized by the City during the French EU Presidency (July -December 2008), spreading from Media to Music, Science and research, Business and Development, etc.,...tastefully starting immediately with a .."European Food Festival", (that "EuroFora" regretfully had to miss because of an urgent trip to Paris, to prepare the EU - Mediterranean Summit of Heads of State and Government)..

Regardless of normal national political differencies, Ries, (a Socialist for whom earlier rumours hinted at a possible Ministerial mission by President Sarkozy), "thanked the President for scheduling 3 official visits in Strasbourg" this semester (July, October and December 2008), and firmly reminded "Prime Minister Fillon's warning, recently in Holland, that France will never drop Strasbourg as Headquarters of EU Parliament's 12 plenaries each year : - "If anyone might ask to modify EU Treaties on this point, then, everything", including all other EU institutions' location in several EU countries, "will come also at the table for possible changes"..

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Russia - Georgia differend makes CoE re-invent Geography !

Friday, 26 September 2008

 

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The recent Georgia - Russia crisis over South Ossetia had already an unexpected effect in Europe : It obliged the Strasbourg's PanEuropean organization, the Council of Europe (CoE) to start re-inventing functional Geography !

Astonished, but smiling CoE's Officials, revealed to "EuroFora", that a High-level group of Political leaders from its Parliamentary Assembly, who made an exceptional visit to Moscow and Tbilisi, as well as at S.Ossetia, at the eve of a rather "hot" session in Strasbourg next week, had to travel all the way back from Russia to .. Munich (Germany), in order to take another airplane for Georgia, because direct links between the two neighbouring countries had been "freezed" after the conflict !

This unprecedented, giant zig-zag (See Map), transforming a European flight into a .. Trans-Continental one, by its huge dimensions, not only wasted precious Time, but also obliged CoE MEPs' political leaders to stay for tens of hours closed inside airplanes' artificial air and seats not destinated for flights longer than 10 hours...

One of the results was that CoE Assembly's leaders were certainly glad to find Strasbourg's usual Sunday excursion to the best fresh air of the Alsace region : at the Haut Koenigsburg Castle, standing high at a pik of Vosges Mountains full of eye-catching views and refreshing oxygen, which celebrated its 100th Anniversary since being restored from the latest demolition, curiously provoked from an old miltary clash with a Swedish army, from the country which currently chairs the CoE !

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As a consolation, the Swedish President of CoE's Political Committe, Goran Lindbland, confirmed to "EuroFora" that he'd visit Haut Koenigsburg, peacefully this time..., but, in order to keep a cool atmosphere, he preferred to postpone for afterwards the formal anouncement of CoE group's visit to Russia and Georgia.. Recent Demands to freeze the credentials of Russian MEPs at CoE's Assembly, have stirred a controversy, which, according to some observers,might, eventually, spread also towards the credentials of the Georgian delegation, just coming back to Strasbourg from recent elections..

An unmistaken indication that all this could put a heavy work burden over CoE's Committee on the Rules, which is competent also for checking MEPs' credentials, is the fact that, as "EuroFora" found out, CoE has just decided to reinforce its team, precisely, at the Committee of Rules, by sending there also a beautiful and smart young lady, previously dealing with Political issues, to work together with the experienced and clever head of its secretariat...

Unlike EU or NATO, CoE has no Money or Army to use as possible "Sanctions", (effective or threatened), and, therefore, it often uses its own existence, as a PanEuropean organization, in some "carrot and stick" moves : I.e. a country might be promissed to be given - or on the contrary be threatened to lose - Full or partial Membership, or a special Status, inside CoE, according to whether it complies, or not, to certain Criteria, and/or to the decisions taken by a Majority of other CoE's Member States..

Thus, f.ex., Russian MEPs' credentials have already been "suspended" in the past, as well as Ukranian MEPs', while Belarus was practically dismissed, Serbia delayed, Greece obliged to withdraw during a Military Hunta period, and even ... the USA once were threatened to lose the special status they've got since 1995...

The only one, among those Countries who are usually cited as "problematic" from the point of view of CoE's principles on Human Rights and International Law, to have escaped from such threats, until now, is Turkey : In 1994 - 1995, CoE's Assembly had initially adopted an "Ultimatum" asking Turkey to make substantial progres on Human Rights, Democracy, Cyprus' issue, the Kurdish problem, and the Aegean differend with Greece, etc, and giving Ankara a Deadline of 6 Months.

However, later-on, a compromise avoided any sanction : Instead, CoE created a "Monitoring" Committee, due to check recalcitrant Member States' compliance with commitments, starting witrh Ankara's. Now, this "Monitoring" Committee has to check various countries, but also to re-start checking Turkey's situation, almost the same time as Russia's and Georgia's, ... while recently even an old CoE Member, as the U.K. did not escape from a check on its controversial 2005 Election result....

But, at this crucial moment, the over-active Swedish Foreign Minister, Carl Bildt, who currently chairs CoE's powerful Ministerial Committee, suddenly took another Geography-twisting decision : - Exceptionally, CoE's Foreign Ministers did not meet this week in Strasbourg, but at ... New York, on the sideliness of UNO's Assembly !..

Probably justified by topical political developments, and by the fact that Foreign Ministers were, at any case, obliged to be in New York these days for the UNO, this second Geographic paradox, indirectly but surely had also another unexpected result :

In real practice, this exceptional New York CoE Ministerial meeting was inevitably transformed (at least partially) into a kind of ... informal Heads of State and Government Summit, since Foreign Ministers were, as usual, accompagnying their Presidents or Prime Ministers to New York..

Perhaps the Timing was not due to pure chance : Big Political decisions, usually dealt with at a Top level, have to be taken, indeed, next week at the CoE in Strasbourg on at least 2 thorny issues : The Russia - Georgia differend, and the Cyprus' issue, which inevitably relates also to EU - Turkey relations.. Both of great interest also to the USA and other Global players.

It's a fact that the New York - Strasbourg's exceptional round trip, occured this same week with the, equally exceptional, Moscow - Munich - Tbilisi zig-zag...

Perhaps the people usually worried about how Strasbourg's airport might link with Brussels for EU Parliament - Commission transport, have seen nothing yet : CoE makes the challenge trans-continental !..

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Sunday, 27 April 2008

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Former "Green-Red" German government's Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer's job at the controversial Turkish pipeline "Nabucco" was denounced as "not proper", "very bad", and "incompatible with Democracy", by the new President of EU Parliament's EuroLeft Group, German Lothar Bisky, replying to an "EuroFora" question.

For once, criticism of Joschka Fischer's doings with Turkey affecting Europe, didn't come only from the Center-Right of the political spectrum, but even from his Left side : The experienced Bisky, who has been chairing all over 1993-2009 the PDS - Die Linke party :  

- "Former Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer got involved in dealings with oil-gaz business in a foreign country, Turkey, and its controversial Nabucco pipeline. This raises questions about Democracy, also because of the well known problems of Human Rights violations in that country. Do you thing that this might be abused in order to cover up and close EU's eyes on Human Rights violations ?", "EuroFora" asked Bisky.

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- "Nabucco pipeline is (only) at the planning stage". And "there are some difficulties",  he observed from the start. But "'I don't want to get into the details of Nabucco pipeline, because I don't think that there is any point for it at the moment".
 
At any case,  "we  (EU Parliament's EuroLeft Group) strongly believe that Politicians should not get involved in the Energy Business, and all these commercial transactions", President Bisky declared on the Joschka Fiischer's affair.

- "We feel that it's something that shouldn't be done. It's not proper !"           

- "We don't think that it's compatible with Democracy either, and it gets politics into a very Bad track", Bisky went on to denounce.
                                                                                                                                                                        
- "EuroLeft  and "Die Linke" always spoke against that, saying that politicians should not get directly into the arms of private enterprises"

- "It is pretty bad if a former Minister takes a job f.ex. in a major Energy producer. So, it's an issue if a Minister who may have seen excellent opportunities, subsequently gets personally grasp of them, in very serious parts of the economy, once he has given up his (Government) job."

- "It doesn't really make politics in general look any better'", Bisky concluded.

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Earlier, this week in Strasbourg, other Journalists had also raised critical questions on former Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer's involvement in the conroversial Turkish Nabucco pipeline to the President of his own EuroParty : Kohn-Bendit of the "Greens", who, contrary to Bisky, tried to find excuses for Fischer, while criticizing his long-time partner, Schroeder for having done a similar move :

- "Shroeder was chancellor", and he "negociated" with "Russians", who gave him a job only "3 Months" after he resigned from the Government. While "Joschka Fischer", on the contrary, got a job with the controversial Turkish Nabucco pipeline only "4 Years after" he left the Government. "He didn't negociate Nabucco", so I have "no objection", Kohn Bendit claimed.

But, many Facts indicate the contrary :

Joschka Fischer was Foreign Minister in Germany from 1999 up to 2005 : I.e. from the year that EU took the controversial decision to give Turkey a "Candidate" status, until he year it started controversial "accession negotiations, (later declared "open-ended" after Sarkozy-Merkel's arrival from 2005-2007).

During that period was prepared the controversial so-called "Annan" Plan (in fact, drafted by others and attributed afterwards to the former UN SG) on Cyprus, which failed after a Popular Referendum said "No" on 2004 with a large Majoriy of 3/4 : 75%. Mainly because it was criticized for making too much concessions to the Turkish side :  Particularly by restricting Greek Cypriot Refugees' Human Right to return to their ancestral Land and/or get restitution of their Familiy Homes and private properties, usurpated by Ankara's Army since the 1974 militay invasion and continuing occupation of the northern part of Cyprus. And by weakening the Central Government, leaving to 2 "constituent States" so much powers and separate interests that more conflicts appeared inevitable, provoking the danger of a break-down in the foreseable future, with more crisis, troubles, perhaps bloodshed, etc., instead of creating an harmoniously integrated, really one federal State.

The controversial Plan was finalized on March-April 2004 at Burgenstock (Switzerland), curiously in the presence of an Envoy by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Germany, then governed by Joschka Fischer, but in the absence of a French and not even an European Union's Envoy, contrary to what was usually practiced on similar occasions in Switzerland (fex. in 1997 at Montreux, in 2000 at Geneva, etc).

Turkey notoriously exploited the failure of the "Annan" Plan in order to convince the EU to decide to start accession Negotiations on December 2004. This provoked an unprecedented series of Institutional Crisis inside the EU, shortly afterwards, when French and Dutch People rejected, 2 popular EuroReferenda by a majority "'No" vote to the EU Constitutional Treaty on 2005, aggraveted in 2004 a Majority Abstention to EU Elections, etc., followed by the recent Irish "No", etc.

"Nabucco" Gas pipeline was notoriously planned since ..2002. It follows an even earlier idea, for an Oil pipeline Baku-Ceyhun, which started to be prepared on 1999-2001 and was meanwhile recently completed.  

So, facts indicate that what is now at stake is based on decisions made during Joschka Fischer's term as former Foreign Minister, closely interested in Turkey's controversial EU-bid.

To the point that he now practically ...switched jobs with a poliician from Turkey, (the State which pays today openly Joschka Fischer), Mr. Ozdemir, who came earlier in Germany, got fast the nationality, and became EiuroMP in a few years, continuing now as head of the "Greens" in Germany, i.e. in Joschka's former job !...

Such astonishing facts risk, unfotunately, to give to German politician Lothar Bisky's criticism of  representative Democracy a topical meaning :

 - "We (EuroLeft Group) think that what is really at stake is Democracy. It's not only about Gas Pipelines or Energy sources", President Lothar Bisky went on to add in his reply to "EuroFora"'s question on Joscka Fischer's personal interests in the controversial Turkish "Nabuco" pipeline.

Such facts, "make People get more distance from Politics. ...People had had enough, and they are fed up !".

- "That's why we (EuroParliament's "EuroLeft" Group) want to strengthen Direct Democracy in Europe. Citizens should be involved in the (EU) Decision-making. In the end of the day, it's not going to help anyone if Politicians are always taking decisions, without involving Citizens. We want to give a voice to the People of Europe. They've got to have their say in the decisions that are taken. That's one of our absolutely fixed and steadfast views. We want more Direct Democracy in Europe. That's how it can become more effective and stronger", he concluded.

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