Islam v. West? : 'Major Civilizations on Collision Course'

Gender roles have traditionally been defined rigidly by most cultures, but the feminist and women's rights movements have resulted in a convergence between the sexes. Can men and women be truly equal, or is the drive to impose equality fueling the battle of the sexes and bringing us into conflict with fundamental biological differences? Oksana is joined by psychologist Glenn Wilson to elaborate on these issues.

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Valentine’s Day Is Banned by the Religious Police in Saudi Arabia

THE JOURNAL: But people still buy chocolates and roses in secret.

RED ROSES LURK hidden in flower shop back rooms and heart-shaped chocolates are sold under the counter, but Saudis still manage to buy Valentine’s gifts and defy the religious police.

Florist Hussein came up with a simple solution to a ban on red tokens of love: he filled his window with white roses, orange irises and violet hydrangeas.

“I’ve hidden everything red in the shop, so when a religious police patrol comes along, they find nothing to complain about,” he said.

Anti-Valentine’s Day patrols by the Muttawa religious police, formally known as the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, started on Wednesday.

They began entering premises stocking chocolates, flowers and souvenirs to warn proprietors against selling anything red or heart-shaped and linked to the annual “infidel celebration” of matters romantic. » | © AFP | Friday, February 14, 2014

Valentine's Day 'Leads to Fraud and Baby-dumping', Says Malaysia's Islamic Watchdog

A number of Acehnese Muslim senior high school students
students hold a protest against Valentine's Dat celebrations
in Banda Aceh, Indonesia

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Muslim authorities in Malaysia blame Valentine's Day for social ills from abortion to alcoholism, but members of minority Chinese community celebrate with mass wedding

Malaysian Islamic authorities took their annual swipe at Valentine's Day Friday, calling it a threat to Muslim values, but 138 couples took part in a mass wedding to mark the date.

In its official Friday sermon text distributed to mosques in the Muslim-majority country, the Malaysian Islamic Development Department blamed Valentine's Day for everything from alcoholism to abortion.

"Social ceremonies such as this are a stepping-stone towards greater social ills such as fraud, mental disorder caused by alcohol, abortion and baby-dumping, and other negative ills that can invite disaster and moral decay among youths," it said.

Known by its Malay-language acronym JAKIM, the department is an official watchdog of Muslim values. It regularly denounces Valentine's Day as encouraging vice and promiscuity. » | AFP | Friday, February 14, 2014 | Valentine’s Day

Whiteout: Monster Snowstorm Wipes Out Power for Half Million

Read the article here | Erik Ortiz | Thursday, February 13, 2014

La Belgique, premier pays à élargir l'euthanasie aux mineurs sans limite d'âge

Manifestation anti-euthanasie, dimanche à Bruxelles

LE FIGARO: Malgré l'opposition de l'Église catholique et des voix dissonantes dans le corps médical, 73 % des Belges sont favorables à la légalisation de l'euthanasie pour les mineurs, sans âge minimum.

La Belgique est devenue jeudi soir le premier pays d'Europe à permettre aux enfants atteints de maladie incurable de choisir l'euthanasie sans âge minimum, afin d'abréger leur souffrance. Seuls les Pays-Bas disposent jusqu'ici d'une loi comparable, mais elle ne s'applique qu'aux mineurs de 12 ans et plus..

La question de la «capacité de discernement» d'un enfant confronté à la douleur et à une mort certaine a été l'un des rares sujets de controverse d'un débat très serein, tant pour la classe politique que dans la société civile. La réalité, exprimée par les praticiens, est que les pédiatres et les infirmiers répondaient déjà dans l'illégalité à la demande des enfants en fin de vie, souvent relayée par des parents eux-mêmes anéantis par un combat sans espoir.

Malgré l'opposition de l'Église catholique et des voix dissonantes dans le corps médical, 73 % des Belges sont favorables à la légalisation de l'euthanasie pour les mineurs. Le vote de la loi par la Chambre des représentants ne faisait plus guère de doute depuis quelques jours. Dans ce royaume de tradition catholique, seule une minorité de députés - chrétiens-démocrates, quelques libéraux et extrême droite flamande du Vlaams Belang - restaient résolus contre le texte. Le gouvernement a laissé la liberté de vote. » | Par Jean-Jacques Mevel | jeudi 13 février 2014

Boris Johnson Is One of Us, Claims Ancient Russian Ethnic Group from Sochi Region

Meet the ancestors: Circassians in Sochi sport traditional headwear
– that bears a remarkable similarity to Boris Johnson's
blond-mop hairstyle

LONDON EVENING STANDARD: An ancient ethnic group that originates from the region around Winter Olympics city Sochi has claimed Boris Johnson as one of their own.

Elders of the Circassian community — famous for their blond hair, blue eyes and “warrior-like” demeanour — have invited the Mayor to visit them in Southern Russia.

They offered to help Mr Johnson, who has no plans to attend the Winter Games, track the roots of great-great-grandmother Hanifa Fered, who they say originates from the region.

His ancestor was one of 1.5 million Circassians — or Adygea — to flee the area now known as Sochi in the 19th century as Russia conquered it.

Hanifa crossed the Black Sea to the Ottoman Empire — present-day Turkey — but was sold as a slave on arrival, a fate that befell many Circassian women who were considered to be among the world’s most beautiful (Miss International Australia 2013, Felicia Djamirze, is Circassian).

The story has been passed down the Mayor’s family: Hanifa was bought as a concubine, and later married, Mr Johnson’s great-great-grandfather Ahmet Hamdi Kemal, a beeswax merchant from the village of Kalfat. Their son Ali Kemal, a journalist, poet and politician, married his Anglo-Swiss wife Winifred in London before returning to Turkey. He was murdered during the Turkish War of Independence. » | Will Stewart in Moscow and Pippa Crerar | Thursday, February 13, 2014

Britain Must Act over Uganda's Anti-gay Bill or Risk Watching an Exodus

Masked Kenyan supporters of the LGBT community stage a
protest against Uganda's anti-gay bill in front of the Ugandan
High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Activists fear gay Ugandan's will be forced to seek asylum if President Yoweri Museveni fails to veto controversial bill

Uganda is facing an exodus of its gay population if the country presses ahead with a controversial bill that allows life imprisonment for homosexuality.

Gay activists in the country believe that large numbers of Ugandan gays will flee if President Yoweri Museveni fails to veto the bill, which could otherwise become law by the end of next week.

The Ugandan leader has been urged by Britain and other Westerns nations to block the bill, but is under pressure from conservatives in his parliament, which voted by a majority in favour of it in December.

In an interview with The Telegraph, Frank Mugisha, a leading Ugandan gay activist, said that hostility to gays in Uganda had increased since the vote, and that many would leave the country altogether if Mr Museveni failed to exercise his veto. Britain, which ran Ghana as a protectorate until 1962, would be an obvious destination to seek asylum in, both because of its colonial links and its reputation as a liberal country for gays to live in. » | Colin Freeman | Thursday, February 13, 2014

George Osborne: Sharing the Pound with Scotland Is 'Not Going to Happen'

The Chancellor uses a speech in Edinburgh to say: "If Scotland walks away from the UK, it walks away from the pound"

Read the Telegraph article here | Ben Riley-Smith, Scottish Political Reporter | Thursday, February 13, 2014

La Belgique autorise les mineurs à choisir l'euthanasie

Au parlement belge, les députés ont tranché en faveur de
l'euthanasie pour les mineurs, sous strictes conditions

TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: Les enfants atteints d'une maladie incurable en Belgique vont pouvoir choisir l'euthanasie pour abréger leurs souffrance.

Les députés ont adopté le texte jeudi matin 13 février malgré l'opposition de certains pédiatres et de la hiérarchie catholique.

La Belgique est le deuxième pays au monde, après les Pays-Bas, à autoriser sous de strictes conditions l'euthanasie pour les mineurs. Là où le législateur néerlandais à prévu un âge minimum de 12 ans, les élus belges ont opté pour la notion, plus flexible, de «capacité de discernement». » | ats,afp/Newsnet | jeudi 13 février 2014

Hollande-Obama, tandem transatlantique

Michelle Obama, François Hollande et Barack Obama, le 11
février, lors du dîner d'État organisé à la Maison Blanche
en l'honneur du chef de l'État français

LE FIGARO: La visite d'État à Washington a permis de souder deux présidents qui ont besoin l'un de l'autre en diplomatie.

Entre la chaleur de l'accueil, les fastes du dîner d'État et les éloges appuyés d'Obama à l'exemplarité du couple franco-américain en matière de coopération diplomatique et militaire, la visite de Washington aura été une bouffée d'oxygène pour François Hollande, loin des tracas de la politique française et de ses records d'impopularité. » | Par Laure Mandeville | mercredi 12 février 2014

LE FIGARO: Magie, amitié, caviar et bœuf aux échalotes, au menu du dîner d'État : François Hollande a été accueilli en grande pompe par le couple Obama, lors d'une réception à la Maison-Blanche mardi soir. » | Correspondante à Washington | Par Laure Mandeville, Rosa Chevassu | mercredi 12 février 2014

The Queen and I – Interview with Farah Pahlavi

Filmmaker and Iranian exile Nahid Persson Sarvestani talks with the widow of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the late Shah of Iran, who was overthrown in 1979.

A Conversation with Empress Farah Pahlavi of Iran

Retourkutsche: EU will Zuzug von Schweizern bremsen

DIE PRESSE: Nach der Volksabstimmung, mit der die Schweiz die Einwanderung vor allem aus EU-Ländern begrenzt, denkt Brüssel über Gegenmaßnahmen nach.

Von wegen "nicht gleich losschlagen", wie es EU-Parlamentspräsident Martin Schulz gefordert hatte: Die EU denkt bereits fieberhaft über Retourkutschen nach, nachdem die Schweizer sich am Sonntag in einem Referendum knapp mit 50,3 Prozent für eine Einschränkung der Personenfreizügigkeit ausgesprochen hatten. 20.000 Stimmen hatten den Ausschlag gegeben.

EU-Kommissionspräsident José Manuel Barroso hat nun unverhohlen gedroht, dass Schweizer künftig ebenfalls nicht mehr ohne weiteres in EU-Ländern wohnen und arbeiten könnten: „Im Sinne der Gegenseitigkeit ist es nicht richtig, dass Schweizer Bürger die unbeschränkte Personenfreizügigkeit in der Europäischen Union haben“, sagte Barroso in einem Interview mit der Nachrichtenagentur Reuters. Konkrete Strafmaßnahmen nannte er aber nicht. „Es ist unfair, dass ein Land alle Vorteile hat und seinen Partnern nicht dieselben Vorteile gewähren will“, betonte der Politiker. » | APA/Reuters/SDA/red. | Mittwoch, 12. Februar 2014

Türkei: Zwei Jahre Haft für "Beleidigung" Erdogans

Erdogan

DIE PRESSE: In der Türkei wurden 17 Regierungsgegner verurteilt, weil sie bei einer Protestaktion Regierungschef Recep Tayyip Erdogan kritisiert haben

Wegen "Beleidigung des Ministerpräsidenten und fehlender Reue": Medienberichten zufolge hat die türkische Justiz am Mittwoch zweijährige Haftstrafen gegen 17 Regierungsgegner verhängt. Die Demonstranten hätten im Jahr 2012 bei einer kleinen Protestaktion in der Stadt Eskisehir den islamisch-konservativen Regierungschef Recep Tayyip Erdogan kritisiert. Eine Berufung ist laut "Hürriyet" unzulässig.

Der Zeitung zufolge hätten die Regierungsgegner bei der Protestaktion Erdogan als "Diener des Internationalen Währungsfonds" und "Diener der Bosse" kritisiert. Der lautstarke Protest gegen die Gesundheitspolitik der AKP-Regierung sei vom Gericht in Eskisehir als "Beamtenbeleidigung" ausgelegt worden. » | APA/AFP | Mittwoch, 12. Februar 2014

British People Too 'Uninformed' to Vote in EU Referendum, Top Eurocrat Claims

Viviane Reding claimed that Britons were not well-informed enough

DAILY EXPRESS: BRITISH people do not know enough about the European Union to decide whether or not to stay in it, a top Brussels official has claimed.

European Commission vice-president Viviane Reding also questioned the ability of Britons to vote in EU elections, as she claimed 70 per cent of UK laws are made by the European parliament.

Mrs Reding said the truth about what happens in Europe is often "completely distorted", which meant voters did not have the facts they needed at the ballot box.

She also insisted the European parliament was the "most powerful" within the union because it made or was jointly responsible for most new laws.

During a question and answer session in London, Mrs Reding urged Britain to spend more time debating EU membership before the possible future in/out referendum.

"Do the people who are asked to vote know what they are going to vote about?" she said.

"I don't care what kind of personal decision you take, the only thing I care for is that you take an informed decision, whatever your decision be."

She said Britain was not using its "tradition of debate" over Europe, adding: "I really wonder why. Because you are on the verge of having maybe a national decision, to take very important decisions." » | Alison Little and Jane Mathews | Tuesday, February 11, 2014

105mph Wind Recorded as Gales Batter Britain

A man walks through the sandstorm at the Swansea seafront
in south Wales on 12 February 2014

THE GUARDIAN: Wales hit by record wind speed as Thames is set to rise to highest level in 60 years

Strong winds continued to batter the UK on Wednesday, causing disruption to road and rail networks and leaving 21,000 people without power.

A top wind speed of 105mph was recorded in Aberdaron in north-west Wales, and Western Power Distribution said electricity supplies had been hit in south Wales, the south-west and the west Midlands. Gusts of 92mph have already been recorded in the Mumbles on the Gower Peninsula, south-west Wales, the weather forecaster Meteogroup said.

Clifton suspension bridge in Bristol was briefly closed for the first time in its history, and the storms have also brought a number of trees down. Coastal areas could also be battered by large waves, the Met Office said.

The Environment Agency warned that the Thames was set to rise in places to its highest levels in more than 60 years, causing severe disruption to communities in Windsor, Maidenhead and Surrey. » | Haroon Siddique, Matthew Weaver and agencies | Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Inside Story: Squeezing Out Switzerland's Immigrants

What message do the Swiss send by backing a plan to restrict immigration from the European Union?

Inside Story: The Islamic Revolution Turns 35

After so many years, has the Revolution in Iran achieved its goals?

Al Jazeera World: Escape in Istanbul

Exclusive gated communities are springing up across Istanbul, but how are they shaping the social fabric of the city?

'Fantastic Day for Democracy!' Switzerland Narrowly Votes to Curb EU Immigration

Switzerland may have jeopardized its access to the EU market for the sake of curbing the number of immigrants coming into the country. The new law which will install quotas for foreign workers goes against long held agreements with Brussels. Well to talk more about the issue of immigration and Euroscepticism we're now joined live by MEP's Jo Leinen - he's in Brussels and Paul Nuttall from Liverpool.