Family Detective: Nick Clegg
Nicholas Peter William Clegg was born in Chalfont St Giles in 1967. Photograph: The Telegraph
THE TELEGRAPH: An investigation into our hidden histories. This week: Nick Clegg. Nick Barratt reports

Nick Clegg won a closely fought contest this week to be the new leader of the Liberal Democrats, beating Chris Huhne to be the party's third leader in two years. Clegg's career in politics is relatively short-lived: he was elected Euro-MP for East Midlands in 1999 and then became MP for Sheffield Hallam in 2005. Prior to front-line politics, he worked for the European Commission from 1994, latterly with former EU Commissioner Leon Brittan, and was previously a Financial Times reporter. His candidacy is not uncontroversial given his part in the downfall of both Campbell and his predecessor, Charles Kennedy.

Who is he related to?

Nicholas Peter William Clegg was born in Chalfont St Giles in 1967 and is only one-quarter English. His mother, Eulalie Hermance van den Wall Bake, is Dutch but was born in Indonesia in 1936. When the Japanese army invaded in 1942, she was sent to a concentration camp with her parents, Hemmy and Louise, and two sisters. They were separated and spent the next three years in terrible conditions. On liberation, the family returned to Holland, but in 1956 Hermance travelled to England, where she met and later married Nick's father, also called Nick. Nick senior is half-English. >>> Nick Barratt | Saturday, December 22, 2007

Naughty Brits Still Smack Their Children. Not Good Enough, Says Europe
THE TELEGRAPH: Britain is one of the few countries in the world not to have completely banned smacking, European Union leaders say, as they called for a change in the law.

The British government’s “unwelcome” intrusion into family affairs was to blame for the delay in the complete ban of the practice, the Council of Europe warned.

The Council, a body which monitors compliance with the European convention on Human rights, also blamed traditional parenting practices that were based on “authority”.

The comments come ahead of a debate in Strasbourg on Tuesday where EU leaders and campaigners against the “corporal punishment of children” will criticise the UK government for not banning the practice completely.

Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, deputy secretary general of the Council of Europe, said on Monday that 20 countries had "formally abolished laws" against smacking since over the past three year.1998 ruling found it violated a child’s human rights.

"The UK is one of the countries that has not yet implemented a full ban," she said.

“In part, this is because the traditional parent-child relationship in the UK is one of authority [and] state intervention into family affairs is still not welcome.” Smacking ban delays caused by 'unwelcome government intrusion', Europe says >>> Andrew Hough | Monday, April 26, 2010

Labour in Turmoil as Pressure on Brown Grows
Gordon Brown. Times Online
TIMES ONLINE: Labour’s struggle to overcome the Liberal Democrat surge broke out into the open yesterday when Alan Johnson positioned himself to lead the party’s post-election talks with Nick Clegg.

Hours after the Liberal Democrat leader had ruled out keeping a defeated Gordon Brown in No 10, the Home Secretary risked deepening internal tensions by using a television interview to say that he did not share the “horror” of some colleagues at the prospect of power-sharing.

With ten days to go until the election, a YouGov poll in The Sun today confirms that Labour is in third place. The first postal votes have been cast already and start arriving at town halls today.

Mr Brown appeared on edge at the launch of his green manifesto in London yesterday, arriving late for his speech. Instead of discussing the environment, he used the opportunity to attack a range of Tory policies. >>> Francis Elliott, Deputy Political Editor | Monday, April 26, 2010

Designierte Ministerin: Özkans Kruzifix-Kritik entfacht heftige Entrüstung
WELT ONLINE: Mit ihrer Aussage, Kruzifixe gehörten nicht in staatliche Schulräume, zieht die designierte Ministerin Aygül Özkan (CDU) bayerische Wut auf sich. Ein CSU-Politiker hält ihr das Grundgesetz vor, ein anderer nennt ihre Äußerung indiskutabel. Und die Schülerunion will Özkan nicht im niedersächsischen Kabinett sehen.

Die designierte niedersächsische Sozialministerin Aygül Özkan (CDU) erntet mit ihrer Forderung nach einem Kruzifixverbot an staatlichen Schulen weiter entschiedenen Widerstand in den eigenen Reihen. Entrüstet äußerten sich insbesondere Politiker der CSU.

Bayerns Innenminister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) bezeichnete die Haltung Özkans als völlig indiskutabel. Der CSU-Politiker Herrmann sagte der in Düsseldorf erscheinenden „Rheinischen Post“, Deutschland sei von der christlichen Tradition geprägt. Das solle auch der jungen Generation in den Schulklassen vermittelt werden.

Der frühere bayerische Wissenschaftsminister Thomas Goppel (CSU) verwies die Deutsch-Türkin Özkan auf das Grundgesetz. Dieses sei nach der NS-Zeit mit ausdrücklicher Rückbesinnung auf das christliche Menschenbild verabschiedet worden, sagte Goppel, Vorsitzender des Geprächskreises der „ChristSozialen Katholiken“. >>> EPD/cn | Montag, 26. April 2010

Altkanzler: Helmut Schmidt geißelt "Größenwahn" der Manager
WELT ONLINE: Er lobte Richard von Weizsäcker und rechnete mit den "verachtenswerten Typen von Finanzmanagern" ab. Altkanzler Helmut Schmidt hat bei einer Würdigung für den Altbundespräsidenten die Schuldigen an der Wirtschaftskrise attackiert. An deren "Größenwahn" habe die Menschheit noch Jahre zu leiden.

Henry Kissinger war aus den Vereinigten Staaten nach Berlin gekommen, Vaclav Havel reiste aus Prag an und Helmut Schmidt machte sich aus Hamburg auf dem Weg – sie alle ehrten im Berliner Konzerthaus auf Einladung der Körber-Stiftung den Mann, der vor wenigen Tagen sein 90. Lebensjahr vollendete: Richard von Weizsäcker.

Das Leben des einstigen Staatsoberhauptes, sein Anteil an der Ostpolitik und die berühmte Rede vom 8. Mai 1985 kamen mehrfach zur Sprache. Außerdem ging es um die Zukunft Europas und die Weltpolitik, etwa den Umgang mit dem Iran.

Der sozialdemokratische Bundeskanzler a. D. würdigte den Altbundespräsidenten, der einst in der CDU Karriere gemacht hatte. Hinter einem schlichten Tisch in seinem Rollstuhl sitzend, ehrte Helmut Schmidt von Weizsäcker, dessen „Gedankenreichtum“ und seine „moralische Disziplin“.

Schmidt, diesmal ohne Zigarette, sprach von Weizsäcker mit „lieber Richard“ an, hanseatisch vollendet in der Sie-Form. Er benötigte nur wenige Momente, um die im Publikum erwartete „Schmidt Schnauze“ ertönen zu lassen. Von Weizsäcker habe sich nie für persönlichen Luxus interessiert, sondern für diesen „höchstens Verachtung“ übrig gehabt.

Er stehe damit im Gegensatz zu den „verachtenswerten Typen von Bank- und Finanzmanagern“, die mit „zügellosen Größenwahn“ der Welt mit der Wirtschaftskrise eine Rezession beschert hätten, unter der „beinahe die gesamte Menschheit noch Jahre zu leiden haben wird“, polterte Schmidt. >>> Von Daniel Friedrich Sturm | Sonntag, 25. April 2010

The Rootless World of the Super-rich
THE TELEGRAPH: Once, very wealthy people owned big estates in the country. Now they have homes all over the world and flit to and fro in private jets, yachts - or even submarines. Mark Palmer reports

Even before rumours began to circulate that it was haunted, David and Victoria Beckham had never slept a night in Domaine St-Vincent, the estate in Var-Provence they bought three years ago for £1.5 million. This might seem odd for those of us who can only fantasise about a second home in the South of France, but to the money-bags crowd there's nothing unusual about it at all.

In 2006, the super-rich - that exclusive group - like to see themselves as citizens of the world. They flit from one continent to the next, wheeling and dealing at 30,000 ft, always a few hundred miles ahead of the tax man but only a couple of clicks away from their PAs, solicitors, financial advisers, accountants, wives, mistresses and children.

"I was at an amazingly swanky wedding in Paris recently," says Stephen Bayley, the style guru and art historian. "With my pitiable suburban reflexes, I asked another guest where he was from. He said: 'I've just flown in from Ibiza. I have a flat here in Paris, but my real home is Rio. Anyway, tomorrow I'm going to my apartment in New York.' Then he added, and this is the interesting bit, 'In this milieu, we don't commit adultery, we travel'."

Once upon a time, the rich were rooted. They had big estates in the country. They were chairmen of local charities; they hosted the summer fête. Today, they are rootless - international nomads forever in search of fertile ground in which to sow the seeds of another bumper financial harvest.

Wander down the Bishop's Avenue in north London - which boasts Britain's highest concentration of multi-million pound homes - and you'll find the place practically deserted.

"That's one of the problems we have," says Trevor Abrahmsohn, head of Glentree International, a firm of estate agents that specialises in upscale houses in the area. "For a lot of people, this is their third or fourth home and sometimes they lose interest. They can't be bothered to live here and they can't be bothered to sell."

So, where are they? Well, they're everywhere and nowhere. Some follow the sun while others follow their business investments - and the best chance of seeing them in the same room is likely to be at art sales in London or New York. Never has the phrase "jet set" been quite so appropriate to describe this tribe, were it not for the fact that if you want to buy a plane with room for five passengers, there is a two-year waiting list. And never has the gap between the super-rich and the middle classes been so wide >>> Mark Palmer | Wednesday, June 07, 2006

General Election 2010: David Cameron's Smash and Grab Raid on Labour
THE TELEGRAPH: David Cameron has been given renewed hope of securing an overall majority in the Commons after party strategists identified 20 Labour seats that have unexpectedly become winnable following the rise of the Liberal Democrats.

The success of Nick Clegg in the first two televised debates was thought to have reduced Tory prospects of forming a government after May 6.

However, Conservative strategists now believe that the increase in support for the Lib Dems has been far more damaging for Labour, which is in danger of coming third in the popular vote.

In response, Mr Cameron has ordered an aggressive “decapitation” campaign to try to snatch up to 20 seats that the Tories had previously thought unwinnable, including two held by Cabinet ministers. If successful, the party leadership believes the strategy could help the Conservatives achieve an overall majority of MPs. >>> Robert Winnett, Rosa Prince and James Kirkup | Sunday, April 25, 2010

British Ambassador Survives Suicide Bomb Attack in Yemen
THE TELEGRAPH: The British ambassador to Yemen has survived a suicide bomb attack by terrorists in the capital Sana'a.

The ambassador, Timothy Torlot, was in a convoy travelling to the embassy, situated on a hill overlooking the city, when the bomb was detonated on Monday morning.

One person was confirmed by the Yemeni authorities to have died, but it is not clear whether they were referring to the attacker, who was said to have been blown to pieces.

They confirmed that no-one from the embassy was killed, while Mr Torlot himself was said to be unhurt.

Witnesses said the attacker had failed after being "slow" to get close to the vehicle in which Mr Torlot was travelling.

The attack will add to concerns over Yemen's instability and use as a base by terrorist groups including al-Qaeda. >>> Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent | Monday, April 26, 2010

'Dear Uncle Adolf': Documentary Details Fan Letters Sent to Hitler
THE TELEGRAPH: Fan letters written to Adolf Hitler during the Second World War were the subject of a new documentary in Germany last night.

'Dear Uncle Adolf' was the first documentary detailing the tens of thousands of surviving fan letters Hitler received while in power which were seized by the Soviets when they conquered Berlin in 1945.

For years these love notes, advice letters, gifts and health-tips lay undiscovered in Russian archives. Discovered in 2007, they formed the basis of a German book called 'Letters to Hitler'. Last night the Svengali-like grip that the Austrian-born Hitler exerted over Germany was unveiled as actors read out the letters that would fill a truck.

They were letters that often accompanied gifts, in the case of Margarethe Wagner, a pair of socks sent in 1938 after Hitler occupied the Czech Sudetenland border region.

"I knitted these for you as you freed us," she wrote. >>> Allan Hall in Berlin | Monday, April 26, 2010

Dokumentation: Lieber Onkel Hitler
WELT ONLINE: 22.40 Uhr Arte In einem Moskauer Spezialarchiv wurde vor Kurzem eine sagenhafte Entdeckung gemacht, die erschütternde Einblicke in die Beziehung der Deutschen zu Adolf Hitler gewährt. In diesem Archiv lagerten über 100 000 Botschaften aus der deutschen Bevölkerung an den Diktator. Mithilfe dieser "Fanpost" und anderer Dokumente vermittelt die Dokumentation von Michael Kloft einen Eindruck von der unfassbaren Ausstrahlung Hitlers und der unheimlichen Faszination, die leider der größte Teil der Deutschen für ihn empfand. [Quelle: WeltOnline] Von Harald Peters | Sonntag, 25. April 2010

La carte bleue "islamique" divise au Canada
LE MONDE: Ce n'est encore qu'une niche potentielle mais elle soulève déjà des critiques : la carte bancaire "islamique", dont UM Financial, modeste institution financière de Toronto, a annoncé, début avril, le lancement au Canada puis aux Etats-Unis, inquiète, y compris les musulmans modérés.

La carte iFreedom Mastercard, proposée à tous les Canadiens, musulmans ou non, a été déclarée "conforme aux lois islamiques" par des experts de cette communauté, affirme le président d'UM Financial, le Canadien Omar Kalair. La charia "autorise le commerce mais pas l'usure", rappelle-t-il. De ce fait, ses clients potentiels "laissent dormir leur argent dans les comptes courants des cinq grandes banques du pays" car ils renoncent à des cartes de crédit, des prêts immobiliers ou des investissements financiers, à cause des intérêts sur dépôts ou prêts interdits par leur religion.

Cette carte "islamique", qui devrait être lancée aux Etats-Unis d'ici la fin de l'année, selon M. Kalair, est une carte prépayée, avec un plafond de 6 000 dollars canadiens (4 500 euros), sans intérêt, ni frais mensuels ou de transaction. Elle coûte 50 dollars pour deux ans, avec des avantages, dont une ristourne de 1 % en argent sur les achats de plus de 100 dollars et des rabais sur les vols de la compagnie aérienne des Emirats arabes unis, Etihad Airways. >>> Anne Pélouas (à Montréal) | Vendredi 23 Avril 2010

Vichy: Le grand rabbin de France rend hommage aux Justes
À Vichy, le rabbin Bernheim devait donner une conférence sur le thème "Juifs et Français, quelle position aujourd'hui ?" Phto : Le Point
LE POINT: Gilles Bernheim, premier grand rabbin de France à se rendre à Vichy pour la journée de la déportation dimanche, s'est recueilli devant une maison où sa belle-mère a été cachée pendant la Seconde Guerre mondiale, au coeur de la capitale du régime collaborationniste du maréchal Pétain. Il a passé plusieurs minutes devant le 5, impasse Mombrun, où sa belle-mère a été cachée entre 1939 et 1945 avec quinze autres membres de sa famille dans un appartement de trois pièces. >>> AFP | Dimanche 25 Avril 2010

Pope 'Could Cancel UK Visit' Over 'Offensive' Foreign Office Memo
THE TELEGRAPH: The Pope could cancel his planned visit to Britain because of a “hugely offensive” Foreign Office memo mocking his stance on abortion and birth control, sources in the Vatican said.

Senior Papal aides suggested the Foreign Office had not taken strong enough disciplinary action against those responsible for the document, which suggested the Pope should open an abortion clinic, bless a homosexual marriage and launch his own range of condoms while he is here.

No-one has lost their job over the memo, which was sent to Downing Street and at least three Whitehall departments, and the civil servant who authorised it has simply been moved to other duties.

One highly-placed source in the Vatican said: “This could have very severe repercussions and is embarrassing for the British government - one has to question whether the action taken is enough.

“It is disgusting. Britain’s ambassador to the Holy See has been in to see the Secretary of State and explain what happened and this will all be relayed to the Pope.

“It’s even possible the trip could be cancelled as this matter is hugely offensive.”

Cardinal Renato Martino, the former head of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, said: “The British government has invited the Pope as its guest and he should be treated with respect.

“To make a mockery of his beliefs and the beliefs of millions of Catholics not just in Britain but across the world is very offensive indeed.” >>> Gordon Rayner and Nick Pisa in Rome | Sunday, April 25, 2010

Such disgusting behaviour from the Foreign Office. What kind of low-life do they employ there these days? This is no way to behave; and it is certainy no way to treat the Pope. Would these same people have had the courage to write these things about the visit of a Muslim cleric? I think we all know the answer to that question! Disgusting! Absolutely disgusting! And if the Pope cancels his visit, no one should be at all surprised. – © Mark

Related:

THE TELEGRAPH: Ministers Apologise for Insult to Pope >>> Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Saturday, April 24, 2010

Klarer Sieg für Fischer, Wahlbeteiligung auf Rekordtief
DIE PRESSE: Bundespräsident Fischer wird mit knapp 79 Prozent wiedergewählt. Rosenkranz dürfte mit rund 16 Prozent ihr Wahlziel verfehlen, Gehring liegt abgeschlagen. Mehr als die Hälfte der Wahlbeteiligten bleibt den Urnen fern. >>> Ag./kron | Sonntag, 25. April 2010

THE GUARDIAN: Austrian president wins landslide second term: Projections put Social Democrat Heinz Fischer on 78% of vote with far-right Freedom party candidate trailing on 15% >>> Associated Press | Sunday, April 25, 2010

Austrian Voters Reject the Far-right and Its ‘Grandma Rosenkranza’
TIMES ONLINE: Austria bucked the European trend towards far-right parties when Barbara Rosenkranz captured barely 15 per cent of the vote in presidential elections.

The incumbent President, Heinz Fischer, a Social Democrat, was returned to office, with exit polls indicating that he had won 78 per cent of the vote.

Ms Rosenkranz’s colleague Heinz-Christian Strache, leader of the far-right Freedom Party, blamed the poor showing on an “unprecedented media witch-hunt against a very good candidate and her family”.

He had initially said she would win 35 per cent of the vote and spearhead the far Right recovery, helping the Freedom Party to win the powerful position of Mayor of Vienna in October. >>> Roger Boyes | Monday, April 26, 2010

Turquie: Le pays ouvre son premier hôtel nudiste
20MINUTES.ch: Un premier hôtel exclusivement réservé aux touristes nudistes étrangers sera inauguré le 1er mai dans le sud-ouest de la Turquie, rapporte le journal Milliyet.

L'hôtel Adaburnu-Gölmar sera le premier établissement naturiste en Turquie, un pays à 99% musulman, aux traditions conservatrices, et seuls les étrangers y seront les bienvenus, précise le quotidien. >>> afp | Dimanche 25 Avril 2010

PC Alert: Rev. Franklin Graham Banned by the Pentagon for Telling the Truth About Islam
TOWNHALL.COM: Franklin Graham, distinguished Christian minister and son of an American evangelical treasure (i.e. Billy Graham) was banned from praying at the Pentagon for their upcoming May 6th National Day of Prayer event because he called Islam “evil.”

Apparently Franklin didn’t get the memo that we can’t say squat about Islam anymore. Oh, hell no. Muslims are groovy no matter what they do, and anyone who says otherwise … is … well … evil … in the eyes of the thought police who’re heading up the United States of Political Horse Smack.

Check it out: When Muslims kill 3,000 Americans, we can’t call them “wicked.” When they abuse women, cut off little girls’ clitorises, stone unruly wives, honor kill their teenage daughters for texting someone not named Achmed [sic], and keep precious women in stone-age bondage worldwide, we can’t say that’s BS because that might offend them. And God forbid we should offend folks who’re six bubbles off level and don’t get basic women’s rights.

I’m scratching a bald spot on the back of my head on this one because we won’t put up with that bollocks with any other people or religion except with Islam; they get a free pass. Yes, we’re being whipped into believing that we’re misjudging them even though the preponderance of historical evidence indicates that those who believe they’re bogus are spot on. Read on and comment >>> Doug Giles | Saturday, April 24, 2010

FOX NEWS: Franklin Graham Regrets Army's Decision to Rescind Invite to Pentagon Prayer Service: Evangelist Franklin Graham said Thursday that he regrets the Army's decision to rescind its invitation to him for the Pentagon's National Day of Prayer service on May 6, but expressed "strong support" for the U.S. military. >>> Updated: Thursday, April 22, 2010

VIDEO: The Violent Oppression of Women in Islam >>> (Viewer discretion is strongly advised)

Lebanese to Stage March for Secularism
BBC: Civil society activists in Lebanon are hoping that thousands will turn up for an unprecedented rally in Beirut.

The march for secularism will call on all Lebanese to unite and work towards the abolition of the country's deeply divisive sectarian system.

The organisers say it is time to redefine what it means to be Lebanese.

They say this is because at the moment it comes second to being a Muslim or a Christian, Shia or Sunni, Catholic or Orthodox.

Eighteen groups make up Lebanon's multi-denominational system, and the civic rights of the members of these groups are determined by their religious leaders rather than the government.

Only religious authorities can register marriages, births or death or rule on matters of inheritance - so all Lebanese end up having different rights.

Muslims, for example, cannot adopt children; Maronite Christians cannot get divorced, and it is impossible for members of different sects to marry each other, while civil marriage is not an option here. >>> Natalia Antelava, BBC News, Beirut | Saturday, April 24, 2010

LE FIGARO: Le camp laïque tente une sortie au Liban : Dans un pays où les dix-huit communautés se partagent tout l'espace public, quelques milliers de personnes ont manifesté dimanche pour «desserrer l'étreinte». Sans illusions. >>> Par Sibylle Rizk | Lundi 26 Avril 2010

Niqab, polygamie et polémique
leJDD.fr: Le souhait formulé par Brice Hortefeux de déchoir de la nationalité française le mari d'une jeune femme portant le niqab a enflammé le débat politique ce samedi.

Plus que la verbalisation, à Nantes début avril, d'une jeune femme au volant, au motif qu'elle était vêtue d'un niqab, c'est aujourd'hui la décision prise par Brice Hortefeux qui provoque la polémique. Vendredi soir, le ministre de l'Intérieur a en effet demandé à son collègue de l'Immigration, Eric Besson, de déchoir de sa nationalité française le mari de la "contrevenante", celui-ci étant notamment suspecté de polygamie et de fraudes aux aides sociales (lire: Niqab, Hortefeux tape fort). Agé de 35 ans, Lies Hebbadj, qui appartiendrait à la mouvance radicale du Tabligh, aurait eu douze enfants avec quatre femmes différentes. Selon i-Télé, trois d'entre elles vivraient dans le même quartier à quelques maisons les unes des autres, en banlieue nantaise. Une autre aurait pris ses distances, accusant son conjoint de mauvais traitements. >>> N.M. (avec Reuters) - leJDD.fr | Samedi 24 Avril 2010

Verbunden / Lien en relation avec l'article:

KRONEN ZEITUNG: Wirbel in Frankreich: Verschleierter Autolenkerin droht die Ausweisung >>> Samstag, 24. April 2010

Ministers Apologise for Insult to Pope
THE TELEGRAPH: The Government has apologised to the Pope over official documents that mocked his forthcoming visit to Britain by suggesting he should bless a gay marriage and even launch Papal-branded condoms.

The astonishing proposals, leaked to The Sunday Telegraph, were contained in secret papers drawn up earlier this month by civil servants following a 'brainstorm’.

The ideas, included in a memo headed 'The ideal visit would see ...’, ridiculed the Catholic Church’s teachings including its opposition to abortion, homosexual behaviour and contraception. Many appeared to be deliberately provocative rather than a serious attempt to plan an itinerary for the September visit.

The proposals, which were then circulated among key officials in Downing Street and Whitehall, also include the Pope opening an abortion ward; spending the night in a council flat in Bradford; doing forward rolls with children to promote healthy living; and even performing a duet with the Queen. >>> Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Saturday, April 24, 2010

THE SUNDAY TIMES: Foreign Office sorry for insult to Pope: THE government apologised to the Pope last night after an official paper suggested he should be asked to open an abortion clinic, bless a gay marriage and launch a Benedict-branded condom range on his state visit in September. >>> Kate Youde | Sunday, April 25, 2010

Labour Party Self-destructs
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Labour's general election campaign is in crisis amid damaging rows between senior cabinet ministers and a new poll showing support for the party dropping to a six-month low.

In one particularly bad-tempered incident, Lord Mandelson ordered Harriet Harman, the party's deputy leader, to "shut up" and told her he did not want to hear from her again, in a dispute over election strategy.

The campaign team has also been riven by in-fighting over what should happen if Labour is only able to cling to power in a hung parliament – with one faction accused of encouraging a Liberal Democrat demand that the price for joining a coalition would be Gordon Brown's dismissal as leader. General Election 2010: Labour civil war as support slumps in new poll >>> Patrick Hennessy and Melissa Kite | Saturday, April 24, 2010

Nick Clegg: I Will Not Prop Up Gordon Brown
THE SUNDAY TIMES: NICK CLEGG has declared that he will refuse to prop up an “irrelevant” Gordon Brown even if Labour secures the largest number of seats in a hung parliament.

The Liberal Democrat leader is ready to tear up the rulebook and oust the prime minister if there is no decisive result on May 6. In a Sunday Times interview he warned that Brown’s position would be untenable if Labour got a low share of the popular vote but still ended up as the biggest party in the Commons.

“I think it’s a complete nonsense. I mean, how on earth? You can’t have Gordon Brown squatting in No 10 just because of the irrational idiosyncrasies of our electoral system,” Clegg said. >>> Isabel Oakeshott, Jonathan Oliver and Marie Woolf | Sunday, April 25, 2010

THE SUNDAY TIMES: Nick Clegg catches the angry transatlantic wind: The surge in the Lib Dem’s ratings mirrors the rise of US outsiders such as Ross Perot >>> Andrew Sullivan | Sunday, April 25, 2010

MAIL ON SUNDAY: Refugee charity attacks Clegg on illegal immigrant amnesty: Liberal Democrat plans for an amnesty for potentially hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants came under attack last night from a leading refugee charity. >>> Brendan Carlin | Sunday, April 25, 2010

Clegg ‘legs’ Brown >>>

Thai PM Rejects Compromise

Strict Immigration Law in Arizona


THE NEW YORK TIMES: U.S.’s Toughest Immigration Bill Is Signed in Arizona >>> Randal C. Archibold | Friday, April 23, 2010

Inside a Russian Billionaire's $300 Million Yacht

Charismatic Judge Who Pursued Spain's Fascist Assassins Finds Himself on Trial
THE OBSERVER: Powerful enemies are attempting to unseat the 'superjudge' who tried to bring the death squads of Franco's dictatorship to book

The Spanish judge Baltasar Garzón, who dared to investigate the atrocities of the Franco dictatorship. Photo: The Observer
The crowd gathered outside Madrid's national court was loud and angry. "The world has been turned upside down," they cried. "The fascists are judging the judge!" Some carried photographs of long-dead relatives, killed by rightwing death squads in Spain's brutal civil war in the 1930s. Others bore placards bearing the name of the hero they wanted to save, the controversial "superjudge" Baltasar Garzón.

Pedro Romero de Castilla carried a picture of his grandfather, Wenceslao – a former stationmaster taken away from his home in the western city of Mérida and shot by a death squad at the service of Generalísimo Francisco Franco's rightwing military rebels 74 years ago. The family have never found his body.

Garzón, he explained, had dared to investigate the atrocities of 36 years of Franco's dictatorship and now, as a result, he faces trial for allegedly abusing his powers. "My grandfather's case is one that Garzón wanted to investigate," he said. "He's a brave and intelligent judge, but now the right are out to get him." >>> Giles Tremlett Madrid | Sunday, April 25, 2010

Related / Verbunden / Lien en relation avec l’article:

LE FIGARO: Espagne: le juge Garzon fait appel >>> AFP | Samedi 10 Avril 2010

THE TELEGRAPH: Crusading Spanish Judge Balthasar Garzon Faces Trial Over Franco Probe >>> Fiona Govan in Madrid | Wednesday, April 07, 2010

Wahlkampf: Großbritanniens Liberale wittern Machtchance
ZEIT ONLINE: Auch nach dem zweiten TV-Duell stehen die Liberalen im Wahlkampf gut da. Labour-Strategen freut das, sie planen mit ihnen ein neues Mitte-Links-Lager.

Vorbereitung auf das TV-Duell: Aufsteiger Nick Clegg von den Liberalen (l.), Tory-Chef David Cameron (M.) und Premier Gordon Brown (Labour). Bild: Zeit Online
Langsam muss man sich in Großbritannien an die Vorstellung gewöhnen, dass das politische System des Landes vor einem radikalen Wandel steht. Nick Clegg, der jugendliche Führer der Liberaldemokraten, dem die erste britische TV-Debatte der drei Parteichefs zu Celebrity-Status verhalf und die Liberaldemokraten in den Umfragen nach oben schießen ließ, bestand auch die zweite TV-Diskussion. Gewiss vermochte er nicht wieder einen solch glanzvollen Auftritt hinzulegen wie vergangene Woche in der ersten Runde, in der er sich erfolgreich in den Mantel des Rebellen gegen das verbrauchte politische Establishment gehüllt und damit gepunktet hatte. >>> Jürgen Krönig | Freitag, 23. April 2010

Wirbel in Frankreich: Verschleierter Autolenkerin droht die Ausweisung
KRONEN ZEITUNG: Der Fall einer Muslimin, die in Frankreich mit Gesichtsschleier Auto gefahren war und dafür einen Strafzettel kassiert hatte, zieht immer weitere Kreise. Nach einem lautstarken öffentlichen Protest gegen den Strafzettel über 22 Euro droht der Frau und ihrem Mann nun die Ausweisung. Auch die Debatte um ein Burka-Verbot wurde dadurch weiter angeheizt.

Im Zuge des Streits fand das Innenministerium zudem noch heraus, dass der in Nantes lebende Ehemann der 31-Jährigen in Polygamie mit insgesamt vier Frauen lebt und der radikalen Tablighi-Jamaat-Bewegung (Gemeinschaft der Verkündigung und Mission) angehört. Die vier Frauen sollen zudem alle unberechtigt Unterstützung für Alleinerziehende und andere Sozialleistungen beziehen. Mann hat zwölf Kinder von vier Partnerinnen >>> | Samstag, 24. April 2010

Sunday Times Rich List 2010: Britain's Richest See Wealth Rise by One Third
THE TELEGRAPH: The collective wealth of Britain’s 1,000 richest people has increased by almost a third in the past year despite the uncertain economy, according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2010.

The multimillionaires are worth £335.5 billion, up £77.265 billion (29.9 per cent) on last year, according to the latest edition of The Sunday Times’ Rich List 2010.

The rise is easily the largest annual increase in the 22 years that the survey has been carried out.

In 1997, when Labour came to power, the collective wealth of the then richest 1,000, was just £98.99 billion. In total, the number of billionaires in this year’s list has risen from 43 to 53.

The findings are likely to prove controversial, coming just ahead of the general election and with spending cuts and tax rises expected from whichever party wins.

Top of the Sunday Times Rich List 2010 again is Lakshmi Mittal, the steel tycoon, whose fortune has more than doubled from £10.8 billion last year to £22.45 billion.

He is followed by: Roman Abramovich, the oil and industry magnate and owner of Chelsea FC, worth £7.4bn - up six per cent on last year; the Duke of Westminster, the property owner, now worth £6.75bn, an increase of four per cent; and Ernesto and Kirsty Bertarelli, whose £5,950 million wealth, based on pharmaceuticals, has increased by 20 per cent. Kirsty Bertarelli is also considered the richest woman in the list. >>> Jasper Copping | Saturday, April 24, 2010

Dorfers Donnerstalk - Rosenkranz' Kinder

Barbara Rosenkranz zum Verbotsgesetz und was die Medien daraus machen




YOUTUBE: Barbara Rosenkranz >>>

Rosenkranz Rallies Far Right On Eve of Austria Poll
TIMES ONLINE: ‘We want to preach of the Holy German Reich,’ sings candidate who swears she’s no Nazi

Barbara Rosenkranz. Photograph: Times Online
The voice of Barbara Rosenkranz rises above the small crowd in the Ballhausplatz as she makes the case for the far Right in Austria’s presidential elections tomorrow.

Her chin is square, her hair forms a tight grey helmet. Ms Rosenkranz, mother of ten children, is, for another 24 hours at least, the great white hope of the radical nationalists in Europe.

She is destined to lose against the incumbent President, Heinz Fischer, but if she nets more than 20 per cent of the vote it will be seen as the most significant comeback in Austria since the death of the far-right idol Jörg Haider 18 months ago.

“The family is at the heart of our society and it has been betrayed,” she says, raising her voice to drown out the hoots of left-wing demonstrators. The crowd, mainly Freedom Party supporters still mourning Haider, applaud. The word verrat — betrayal — always goes down well in Vienna. They are craggy men in green jackets, a woman shivering in a low-cut dirndl folk dress and a surprising number of young fans — there largely to see Heinz-Christian Strache, 40-year-old leader of the far Right. He and Ms Rosenkranz are the faces of the radical Right revival. He talks of a modern patriotism and the threat of Islam; she thinks that women should stay at home and breed, and that national socialists should not be muzzled.

In Western Europe Islamophobia has replaced Holocaust denial as a rallying call for rightwingers such as Geert Wilders. Austria, though, is still very much a part of Central Europe — and here the Rosenkranz message, coded though it may be, is well understood. After all, in neighbouring Hungary, once part of the great Austro-Hungarian empire, the extremist Jobbik grouping — anti-Semitic, anti-Gypsy, anti-modernism — has recently won seats in Parliament and is on the way up. >>> Roger Boyes in Vienna | Saturday, April 24, 2010

Izvestia: 'Russian Aristocrat Wants to Be British Premier'
MAIL ONLINE: Yesterday he was at it again.

Touring Newcastle, Nick Clegg - who, as we now know, was a keen childhood actor - told students he was: 'the only one of the three leaders who actually comes from one of our great cities in the North.'

So just how true is that statement? In fact, the Lib Dem leader was brought up in affluent comfort in the Home Counties.

But to understand just how wealthy his background is, we need to cut to South-West France, and a hill overlooking the hamlet of Curac where an imposing ten-bedroom chateau stands.

The house is approached by a long, straight drive bordered by poplar trees which lead up to two sets of iron gates. Inside is an outdoor swimming pool, four-car garage and spacious outbuildings.

By any reckoning it is an impressive pile and one that, were it in England, would undoubtedly fall foul of the Lib Dem's proposed mansion tax on properties worth more than £2million.

It is possible that Clegg actually dreamt up the tax while in Curac, maybe while splashing about in the pool or strolling through its gardens.

After all, it is his parents' house and one that he and his family often visit.

'It's an idyllic spot, and the Cleggs have made it their home from home,' said a near neighbour, who often bumps into the politician and his Spanish wife Miriam, a successful London lawyer whose annual earnings run into the high six figures, when they are there.

'They come down with their children and always look very relaxed and happy.'

Not a bad place for a summer break. And come the winter there is another alternative. Clegg's parents also own a 20-room skiing chalet in the Swiss Alps. Some ordinary northerner! How Nick Clegg is really a man of extraordinary privilege whose family own a chateau >>> Tom Rawstorne | Saturday, April 24, 2010

Nick Clegg Hailed as 'Russian Aristocrat'
Nick Clegg: 'Winston Churchill-like popularity ratings'. Photograph: The Guardian
THE GUARDIAN: Izvestiya newspaper talks of Liberal Democrat leader's Russian heritage and 'Winston Churchill-like popularity ratings'

Is there no limit to Cleggmania? It seems that not only Britain, but now also Russia has fallen under the Liberal Democrat leader's mesmerising spell, with today's Izvestiya newspaper hailing him as a genuine "Russian aristocrat" (article in Russian).

Under the headline "Russian aristocrat wants to be British premier", the paper picks up on Clegg's emphatic victory in the first leaders' TV debate and notes his "Winston Churchill-like popularity ratings".

But a blue-blooded Russian toff? In fact, Izvestiya is not far off the mark: Clegg's father (also Nick) is half-Russian. Nick Clegg senior's parents, who married in 1932, were Hugh Anthony Clegg, a subeditor on the British Medical Journal, and Kira Engelhardt.

Engelhardt was actually a Russian baroness. Her mother, Alexandra Moullen, was the daughter of Ignaty Zakrevsky, a former attorney general in the imperial Russian senate.

In common with other dispossessed Russian aristocrats, Clegg can even lay claim to a ruined manor house.

Zakrevsky, his great great-grandfather, lived on a large estate in modern-day Ukraine, not far from Kiev. The crumbling estate is currently occupied by an agricultural college, but still boasts a two-storey classical mansion, annexes, and a large park. It also has a pyramid. >>> Luke Harding in Moscow | Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Nick Clegg On Immigration

‘The Firing Squad, Please,’ Says Prisoner
THE NEW YORK TIMES: Ronnie Lee Gardner had a quarter-century to ponder his choice, whether to die by lethal injection or take four bullets in the heart.

In a Utah courtroom Friday, 25 years after he was sentenced to death for killing a man during an escape attempt, he declared his preference to the judge: “I would like the firing squad, please.”

With Mr. Gardner’s appeals apparently exhausted, Judge Robin W. Reese of Third District Court in Salt Lake City signed a warrant of execution and scheduled it for June 18. >>> Erik Eckholm | Friday, April 23, 2010

Autriche: L’idéologie pangermaniste de Barbara Rosenkranz
LE TEMPS: La candidate du FPÖ se présente à la présidentielle dimanche en Autriche

La voix est posée, presque fluette. Chevelure d’argent, regard clair, Barbara Rosenkranz parcourt les campagnes et les villes d’Autriche depuis deux mois, vêtue d’une Trachten (robe traditionnelle), martelant son credo d’une «politique familiale» refondée. Sous des abords de femme au foyer sans histoires, Barbara Rosenkranz, candidate à l’élection présidentielle ce ­dimanche, paraîtrait presque inoffensive. Depuis deux mois, pourtant, toute l’Autriche tremble devant cette élue du Parti de la liberté (FPÖ, extrême droite), apôtre d’une idéologie pangermaniste de sombre mémoire.

A 51 ans, «Frau Rosenkranz» règne sur une impressionnante tribu de dix enfants, tous affublés d’un prénom issu de la mythologie germanique: Hedda, Horst, Arne, Mechthild, Hildrun, Volker, Sonnhild, Alwine, Ute et Wolf. Avec son mari Horst, elle met un point d’honneur à organiser tous les ans la «fête du solstice d’été», vieille tradition païenne héritée du national-socialisme et célébrant les «familles saines, fortes et nombreuses». Son époux dirige une revue, Fakten, qui fait la part belle aux négationnistes et dénonce pêle-mêle «les Turcs, les Tchétchènes, les Asiatiques, les Tziganes et les nègres». >>> Maurin Picard | Samedi 24 Avril 2010

General Election 2010: Rise of the English Democrats

BNP Launches Election Manifesto

British Lapdog Gets Ready to Be Set Loose

John Paulson's Donations to Carla Bruni Could Embarrass Nicolas Sarkozy
THE TELEGRAPH: French president Nicolas Sarkozy faced potential embarrassment on Friday after it emerged that the most generous donor to his wife's charitable foundation was John Paulson – the man whose hedge fund is at the heart of the US government's case against Goldman Sachs.

Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife, Carla Bruni. Photo: The Telegraph
The US investment bank is accused of defrauding investors by failing to say that Mr Paulson, a prominent hedge fund manager, bet against a Goldman sub-prime debt product that he helped design.

Mr Paulson correctly bet that the US housing bubble would burst, reaping a £10bn profit for his Paulson & Co hedge fund in 2007. The speculator banked a £2.4bn bonus that year in one of the largest payouts in the history of corporate America.

It transpires that Mr Paulson and his wife, Jenny, pledged to donate €500,000 (£435,000) to Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy's foundation "every year for three years". >>> Henry Samuel, in Paris | Friday, April 23, 2010

Austria's 'Reich Mother' Poised to Return Far-Right to Prominence
THE TELEGRAPH: A far-Right politician whose support for Holocaust deniers and 10 children have earned her the nickname “Reich Mother” is poised to take her Freedom Party to second place in Austria’s presidential race on Sunday.

Campaigning on an anti-immigrant, anti-Islam, anti-feminist ticket, Barbara Rosenkranz, 51, is poised to pave the way for her party to return to its glory days a decade ago under Jörg Haider, the popular and charismatic leader who died in a car crash in 2008.

Mrs Rosenkranz has shocked Austria by calling for the country’s Holocaust denial laws to be repealed. She later signed a statement distancing herself from Nazism.

Germany’s Central Council of Jews has described Mrs Rosenkranz’s position as the main electoral challenger to Heinz Fischer, 71, the Austrian president, as part of a “terrifying shift to the Right” across Europe, following recent gains for far-Right parties in Hungary and France over the last two months.

Earlier this month, the far-Right took more parliamentary seats in neighbouring Hungary’s national elections than at any time since the Second World War and French regional elections last month saw an electoral revival for the National Front. In June, Dutch elections could propel Geert Wilders, whose anti-Islamic, hard-Right Freedom Party leads the polls, into power.

While the role of president in Austria is largely symbolic, it still has significant moral influence, and Mrs Rosenkranz’s personal background and political views have polarised the campaign.

Her husband, Horst, with whom she has had six daughters and four sons, publishes an extremist magazine, raises funds for imprisoned neo-Nazis, and was a member of a neo-Nazi party banned under the Holocaust denial legislation. >>> Phil Cain in Graz | Friday, April 23, 2010

Dramatische Austrittswelle: Missbrauchsskandal treibt Katholiken aus Kirche
WELT ONLINE: Deutsche Katholiken reagieren mit einer dramatischen Austrittswelle auf den Missbrauchsskandal in ihrer Kirche. In Bistümern sowie bei Standesämtern haben sich die Austrittszahlen vielerorts stark erhöht. Die Fluchtbewegung ist dort am stärksten, wo der Katholizismus besonders tief verwurzelt ist. >>> dpa/omi | Samstag, 24. April 2010

ZEIT ONLINE: Missbrauchsskandale – Katholiken treten in Scharen aus der Kirche aus: Die Katholische Kirche erlebt eine Austrittswelle: Wegen der Skandale haben sich die Zahlen in vielen Gemeinden vervielfacht. >>> Zeit Online, dpa | Samstag, 24. April 2010

Europe : L’extrême droite s’enracine
Manifestation de partisans du Front national à Paris. Photo : Le Temps
LE TEMPS: A la présidentielle en Autriche et aux législatives hongroises ce dimanche, des candidats ostensiblement racistes sont en lice. Crise économique, globalisation effrénée, tour d’ivoire bruxelloise… Les électeurs européens sont-ils de plus en plus réceptifs aux plaidoyers de la droite de la droite?

On a parlé d’une vague verte déferlant sur l’Italie. Pour la première fois en mars, la Ligue du Nord a enlevé deux régions. Peu avant en France, le Front national (FN) est sorti de son purgatoire en frôlant 12% des voix au premier tour des régionales. En Hongrie, grâce à sa percée spectaculaire au premier tour des législatives (16,7%), le Jobbik, un parti raciste, entrera au parlement. Le second tour se joue ce dimanche, comme la présidentielle en Autriche, qui oppose le grand favori, le sortant Heinz Fischer, à Rudolf Gehring, un contempteur de minarets, et à Barbara Rosenkranz, candidate du FPÖ ostensiblement antisémite (lire ci-dessous).

On pourrait multiplier les exemples. Ainsi, le British National Party (BNP) de Nick Griffin rêve de décrocher un ou deux strapontins à la Chambre des communes le 6 mai. Au Pays-Bas, le populiste Geert Wilders est assuré de connaître un moment de gloire aux législatives de juin. Crise économique, globalisation effrénée, tour d’ivoire bruxelloise… Les électeurs européens sont-ils de plus en plus réceptifs aux plaidoyers de la droite de la droite? «Les idées du FN progressent partout en Europe et même hors d’Europe», assure Bruno Gollnish, candidat à la succession de Jean-Marie Le Pen à la tête du FN. Selon lui, «un nombre croissant d’Européens réalisent que leurs pays sont privés de la souveraineté, qui est à la Nation ce que la liberté est à la personne. Ils constatent aussi qu’avec la libre circulation, l’immigration devient de plus en plus incontrôlable et substitue des populations à d’autres dans une espèce de brassage universel.» >>> Angélique Mounier-Kuhn | Vendredi 23 Avril 2010

Financial Crisis Has Created Fertile Ground for the Far Right in Europe
TIMES ONLINE: The far Right is notching up astonishing ballot box victories across Europe. The financial crisis has created a sense of victimhood and a need, it seems, for parties that use nationalist rhetoric to criticise globalisation — and which are prepared to offer up scapegoats.

From Geert Wilders in the Netherlands to Umberto Bossi in northern Italy; from Hungary’s Viktor Orban to Jean-Marie Le Pen’s National Front in France, strong personalities are coming foward to exploit the mood. They use terms that were once monopolised by the Left — community, social cohesion, solidarity — but, overwhelmingly, they are concerned with the politics of fear; fear of the outsider.

The far-Right grouping Jobbik did well in the Hungarian elections because it appealled to an almost tribal reflex. Hungarians were worried that funds were running out, that the welfare system was beginning to crack, that there was not enough to go round. Jobbik blamed the Gypsies and won seats in parliament. And its rhetorical drum beat, drawn from centuries of central European anti-Semitism, suggested that a cosmopolitan global plot was making nonsense of the toil of honest Hungarians. >>> Roger Boyes: Commentary | Saturday, April 24, 2010

U.S.’s Toughest Immigration Bill Is Signed in Arizona
Protesters recited the Pledge of Allegiance as groups rallied against the immigration bill in front of the Arizona State Capitol Building on Friday. Photograph: The New York Times
THE NEW YORK TIMES: PHOENIX — Gov. Jan Brewer of Arizona signed the toughest illegal immigration law in the country on Friday, aimed at identifying, prosecuting and deporting illegal immigrants. The governor’s move unleashed immediate protests and reignited the divisive battle over immigration reform nationally.

Even before Governor Brewer signed the law at a 4:30 p.m. news conference here, President Obama strongly criticized it.

Speaking at a naturalization ceremony for 24 active-duty service members in the Rose Garden, Mr. Obama called for a federal overhaul of immigration laws — an overhaul that Congressional leaders signaled they were preparing to take up soon.

He said the failure of officials in Washington to act on immigration would open the door to “irresponsibility by others.” He said the Arizona bill threatened “to undermine basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans, as well as the trust between police and our communities that is so crucial to keeping us safe.”

The law, which opponents and critics alike said was the broadest and strictest immigration measure in the country in generations, would make the failure to carry immigration documents a crime. It would also give the police broad power to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally. Opponents have decried it as an open invitation for harassment and discrimination against Hispanics regardless of their citizenship status. >>> Randal C. Archibold | Friday, April 23, 2010

Welcome to Smokebook: Big Tobacco Subverts Ban
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: TOBACCO giants are using Facebook to subvert bans and international conventions against cigarette advertising, a study by University of Sydney researchers published in the British Medical Journal has found.

''We have gathered here to pay homage to Lucky Strike, the bestest cigarette in the whole widest world,'' says one Facebook page administered by an employee of the tobacco company RJ Reynolds highlighted by the study.

Other Lucky Strike pages, one with tens of thousands of members, had images of old and new tobacco ads and various Lucky Strike tobacco products and merchandise. The report also found employees of British American Tobacco Australia had established similar pages.

In a statement BAT Australia's managing director, David Crow, said: ''It's absolutely not our policy to use social networking sites such as Facebook to promote our tobacco product brands. To do so could breach local advertising laws.

''Our rules mean that employees should not post branded material on social networking sites, blog sites, chat forums or other 'user-generated content' sites such as YouTube - whatever the intention in posting the material may be.''

The statement said ''if we find group employees have posted material that they shouldn't, perhaps out of naivety, we will be telling them to remove it''. >>> Nick O’Malley Investigations | Saturday, April 24, 2010

Dozens Killed in Baghdad in 'Revenge al-Qaeda Attacks'
BBC: A wave of bombings in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, has killed at least 58 people and wounded more than 100.

Most of the attacks occurred near Shia mosques during Friday prayers. At least two went off near the offices of radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr.

A top official blamed al-Qaeda, which in the past has targeted Shia areas.

He said the bombing had been carried out in revenge for the recent killing of three senior al-Qaeda leaders by security forces.

There were at least six bombings in Baghdad on Friday, with some reports putting the total at 13.

The targets included mosques and a market, as well as Mr Sadr's offices in the mainly Shia area of Sadr City. Read on (with video) >>> | Friday, April 23, 2010

Roger Vangheluwe, Bishop of Bruges, Resigns Over Child Sex Abuse
TIMES ONLINE: A senior Catholic bishop has resigned after admitting to sexually abusing a child. He is the latest and most senior cleric to stand down in the crisis engulfing the church.

Roger Vangheluwe, Belgium’s longest-serving bishop, said that he was “enormously sorry” for the “wound” he had inflicted on a young boy about 25 years ago.

“When I was not a bishop, and some time later, I abused a boy,” he said in a statement. “This has marked the victim forever. The wound does not heal. Neither in me nor the victim,” he said.

Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the bishop’s resignation, which is the first among senior clerics since the crisis over paedophile priests began. >>> Joanna Sugden | Friday, April 23, 2010

So When Will British Politicians Find Their Balls? Nicolas Sarkozy Ally 'Received Death Threats' Over Muslim Veil Ban
THE TELEGRAPH: A French conservative politician at the forefront of a campaign for a full ban on Islamic veils has been placed under police protection after reportedly receiving death threats.

Jean-François Copé, who leads the parliamentary group of President Nicolas Sarkozy's UMP party, has had a security officer accompanying him since January, it emerged on Friday.

Mr Copé submitted a proposed bill on banning the veil in public in January, on grounds of security and women's equality. On Wednesday, the government announced its intention to push through a full ban as early as this summer.

Mr Sarkozy, who has said that full veils oppress women, chose to defy France's highest administrative body, which says a full ban could be declared unconstitutional.

In a sign the French are already clamping down on the wearing of the garment, it emerged on Friday that a woman driver wearing an Islamic face veil had been fined 22 euros (£20) by French police for not having a clear field of vision.

Traffic police in the western city of Nantes fined the 31-year-old woman in early April. >>> Henry Samuel in Paris | Friday, April 23, 2010

Hypocrisy! Nick Clegg Interview - On the Smoking Ban and Drug Policy

The Leaders On the Pope’s Visit


THE TELEGRAPH – BLOG: Pope Benedict XVI floored the party leaders during the Sky debate. What will they do when he’s really here? >>> Will Heaven | Friday, April 23, 2010

Infographie : Les différents types de voile musulman
Pour les voir, cliquez ici >>> LeMonde.fr | Mercredi 24 Juin 2009

France’s Model Muslim: 'Imam for Peace' Sows Discontent
Hassen Chalghoumi. Photograph: Spiegel Online International
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: What happens when a Muslim cleric embraces the values of the West? In France, President Sarkozy is using the teachings of one imam for his own purposes. Hassen Chalghoumi, who has backed calls for a burqa ban, now faces threats from his own community.

Hassen Chalghoumi is the best-known imam in France and easily the most controversial, even though he preaches peace instead of hate. Police cars are stationed in front of his mosque during Friday prayers, and he has two bodyguards with him at all times when he goes out in public. Sometimes, when it all becomes too much for him, he takes his wife and their five children and goes away for a week or two, in the hope that all the excitement over him and the ideas he preaches will calm down again,. But the tactic hasn't worked so far, because the whole thing flares up again as soon as he returns home. Chalghoumi has led a hectic life in recent weeks.

There are 5 million Muslims in France, although there could even be as many as 8 million, no one knows for sure. Some have been there for a long time while others are recent immigrants. Within this population, there are believed to be 1,400 women who wear either the large full-body veil, the burqa, in black or blue, or the niqab, the full veil that covers the face apart from the eyes, although that number could also be as low as 400. In any case, Chalghoumi dared to publicly condemn the wearing of the full veil, and he welcomed the idea of outlawing it -- something that may have been ill-advised.

Chalghoumi's is a man who doesn't reveal much about himself, while others seem to think that they know everything about him. What is indisputable is that he was born in Tunis in 1972, immigrated to France in 1996 and became a French citizen in 2000, or perhaps it wasn't until two years later. Sometimes Chalghoumi contradicts himself, or he doesn't remember the details correctly, or he is quoted out of context. It isn't easy to figure him out, but it is easy to like him. He is a gentle person, a man with the grace of a professional dancer. Journey Into a Different World >>> Ullrich Fichtner, Translated from the German by Christopher Sultan |Friday, April 23, 2010

Nick Clegg: Faith Schools Should Teach Children That Homosexuality Is ‘Normal’
THE TELEGRAPH: Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, has said that children attending faith schools should be taught that homosexuality is "normal and harmless".

In a pitch for the “pink vote,” he called on all the parties to prove that they supported full equality for homosexuals, and accused David Cameron, the Conservative leader, of being untrustworthy on the issue.

The Liberal Democrats support measures forcing teachers, including those working in faith schools, to implement policies to combat homophobic bullying, with lessons teaching that same-sex relationships are “normal”.

Mr Clegg said: “Crucially faith schools should have a requirement to have an anti-homophobic bullying policy at their school.”

In an interview with Attitude magazine, the Liberal Democrat leader also called for lesbians and homosexual men who have undergone a civil partnership ceremony to be given the formal and symbolic status of a “married” couple.

Rules which bar homosexual men from giving blood should be scrapped, and refugees who flee persecution on the grounds of their sexuality should receive an automatic right of asylum in the United Kingdom. >>> Rosa Prince, Political Correspondent | Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Greece Calls for Activation of Financial Rescue Package
Prime Minister George Papandreou announces in a televised address on Friday from the island of Kastelorizo that Greece has requested international bailout funds. Photograph: The New York Times
THE NEW YORK TIMES: ATHENS — Describing his country’s economy as “a sinking ship,” the Greek prime minister formally requested an international bailout on Friday, an unprecedented step that will test the bonds of the European Union.

In a nationally televised address, Prime Minister George Papandreou said two waves of austerity measures introduced by the government over the past few months “had failed to convince the markets” that Greece would get its finances under control or be able to avert defaulting on a mountain of debt.

“There is the risk of the sacrifices of the Greek people being lost as rates of borrowing continue to rise,” he said, speaking from the Aegean island of Kastellorizo.

“The time has come for us to ask our partners in the E.U. to activate the mechanism we formulated together,” he said, referring to an emergency aid package arranged two weeks ago. The plan foresees up to €30 billion, or $40 billion, in loans from Greece’s euro-zone partners, as well as up to €15 billion from the International Monetary Fund.

The activation of the E.U.-I.M.F. rescue plan, Mr. Papandreou said, “will send a strong message to the markets that the E.U. is not playing their game and will not leave its currency at risk.”

The announcement means that funding from the I.M.F. can be expedited once the board of the fund has approved the terms. The fund is expected to provide €12 billion, according to E.U. officials.

“We are prepared to move expeditiously on this request,” Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the I.M.F. managing director, said in a statement issued in Washington. >>> Niki Kitsantonis and Matthew Saltmarsh | Friday, April 23, 2010

Obama Slams Wall Street in Push for More Regulation
MAIL ONLINE: President Barack Obama rebuked fat cat executives for shady dealings as he pushed last night for sweeping reforms to stop another financial meltdown.

Without laws imposing stronger scrutiny of the financial industry America is doomed to repeat the past, the Presidents believes.

In a speech today at New York's Cooper Union college, near Wall Street, Mr Obama was outlining the need for new financial regulations and explaining what the nation would be risking if the existing framework is allowed to remain in place unchanged.

Echoing remarks he made in the same place two years ago, he said: 'A free market was never meant to be a free licence to take whatever you can get, however you can get it.

'That is what happened too often in the years leading up to the crisis. 'A free market was never meant to be a free licence to take what you can get': Obama slams Wall St in push for more regulation >>> Mail Foreign Service | Friday, April 23, 2010

Roman Polanski Loses Bid to Be [sic] Avoid Extradition
TIMES ONLINE: Oscar-winning film director Roman Polanski has lost his latest bid to be sentenced while outside the United States for having unlawful sex with a minor more than three decades ago.

Affirming the decision of a Los Angeles judge in January, a state appeals court ruled Polanski must return to California before he can be sentenced and bring his 33-year-long legal saga to a close.

The decision clears the way for Swiss authorities to extradite the 78-year-old fugitive filmmaker to the US. >>> Times Online | Friday, April 23, 2010

David Cameron Edges Second Leaders’ Debate, According to Times Poll
Photo: Times Online
TIMES ONLINE: David Cameron scored a narrow victory over Nick Clegg in the second leaders’ debate last night after an impassioned contest turned personal.

The Tory leader scraped a win — on 37 per cent to Mr Clegg’s 36 per cent — according to a Populus poll for The Times. Some 27 per cent gave the verdict to Gordon Brown as the pressure of tightening polls saw the trio trading ill-tempered barbs.

A series of aggressive exchanges over Trident, Europe, the expenses scandal and election tactics replaced last week’s more consensual style as all three responded to the Liberal Democrat surge by taking their performances up a gear.

Mr Clegg, who took the election by storm last week, gave an edgier performance, playing it anything but safe. “You’re the boss,” he told voters as he urged them to seize the opportunity to change British politics. >>> Roland Watson, Political Editor | Friday, April 23, 2010