Trafficked!

Human trafficking is on the rise in Europe and throughout
the world. This week's EuroQuest looks at the problem and what's being done to combat its spread.

To the right is Anna Ziverte. As she is the star witness in a number of has cases the Dutch government has pending against human traffickers, she has understandably turned her back to the camera.
Click here for a full article about her ordeal as well as an interview in both Real and Windows Media formats.

Segment 1 - Turkey Fights Sex Slavery
The UN’s Organization for Migration has set up an emergency telephone line for trafficked women. Fifty-two women have been saved this way since its launch last year. Dorian Jones has more from Istanbul.

Segment 2 - Anne Ziverte Tells Her Story
After Anna Ziverte was freed from forced sex slavery in Holland, she went to the police. And then, as she told Sarah Johnson, another nightmare began.

Segment 3 - OSCE Special Representative on Combating Trafficking
Jonathan asks Helga Konrad, the OSCEs Special Representative on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, her reaction to our stories from Turkey and the sad tale of Anna Ziverte?
Click here for more information on the OSCE's efforts.

Segment 4 - France Clamps Down on False Marriages
France is clamping down on fraudulent marriages that some immigrants are using to obtain citizenship. As John Laurenson reports from Paris, illegal unions are becoming big business in parts of France.

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To Ban or Not to Ban...

by Sarah Johnson

A town in Belgium did it and the Netherlands is considering it, too: a proposal to ban the burqa. This follows a vote by the Dutch parliament in favour of implementing such a policy.

Geert Wilders, the MP who proposed it, gave three reasons: firstly, security “in this age of terrorism” (as you can’t see who is under a burqa). Secondly, because the burqa is a medieval symbol of the oppression of women, and “that’s not how we treat women here”. And thirdly, because wearing a burqa prevents Muslim women from integrating into Dutch society, making Dutch friends, getting a job etc.

Of course, Geert Wilders' views on Islam are well known and his litany of motivations are a thinly veiled (no pun intended) attempt to continue his limitation of Muslim influence upon Dutch society. No surprises there.

What was a surprise was how seriously others have taken it, both politician and average Joe Bloggs Dutchman alike.

I recently conducted a highly unscientific survey in a few Amsterdam bars and got into quite a heated discussion with one woman who’d overheard me discussing the ban with a friend of mine. She made it quite clear that she was in favour of the proposal, her first argument being that women wearing a burqa scare her daughter. I suggested that if she explained to her daughter why the women were wearing the burqa, her daughter might not find them frightening anymore. This merely irritated her.

There’s no denying that some women are forced to wear the burqa, and it's not actually prescribed in the Koran. So, doesn't this argument really boil down to the question of freedoms: the freedom to choose what to wear, and the right to express our religious beliefs as we see fit. It's easy to see how some Muslims might see this ban as discriminatory – that is, unless it’s a blanket ban on everyone covering their faces, including Father Christmas.

If you want to hear that side of the argument, listen to the interview I made with a Dutch, female lawyer, F. Arslan by clicking here. Though she’s a Muslim, she doesn’t wear the burqa herself. But she says the ban would discriminate against women and Muslims.

You can also here more about the burqa debate, on this week’s EuroQuest.

Integration Issues? Not Again!!!

At left, Dutch MP Geert Wilders. His hair: not his natural color. You heard it here first folks!

Sarah Johnson produces and Daniel Frankl present this week's show. And yes, that 'ole integration debate rears its ugly head yet again. Will it ever end? I doubt it.

Segment 1 - Politics of the Veil: Is it a crime to wear a Burqa?
The Dutch government is discussing whether to ban the burqa from the streets of Holland. As Fiona Campbell reports.
An editorial from Sarah Johnson on this subject tomorrow!!!

Segment 2 - Politics of religion vs. integration
Women wearing burqas is nothing new in the Netherlands... Why is it an issue now? To answer that question, Daniel Frankl spoke with Andre Krouwel, a political analyst and lecturer at the Free University of Amsterdam.

Segment 3 - Being a Muslim in the UK post London bombings
Has being a Muslim in London become more difficult since the terrorist attacks last July? Sarah Johnson traveled reports from the London underground.

Segment 4 - The Dutch integration debate… with laughs
What better weapon to fight misunderstanding and distrust than comedy! Kathy Clugston went to see Abderrahim Bouna and Amier Abou Yakob perform in Utrecht.
Can racism and intercultural misunderstanding be funny? Click here to find out more about the hijinks of Sjaak and Hassan...

Who Is That Valentine Guy, Anyway?

Consecrated bishop of Terni by Pope Victor I c.197. Noted evangelist, miracle worker and healer, he was much loved by his flock. Imprisoned, tortured, and beheaded by order of the prefect Placid Furius during the persecution of Aurelius. He was murdered in secret and at night to avoid riots and revenge by the people of Terni. Some scholars believe that he and Saint Valentine of Rome are the same person.
Source CatholicForum.com

Segment 1 - Gay Marriage Becomes Average Affair
Gay marriage has become so normal in Holland that, like straight marriage, it has lost some of its romance. Jonathan Groubert interviews a very sober Miki, who is about to get married to his Spanish boyfriend, Enrique.
Deutsche Welle has an excellent article on same sex marriage in the Netherlands.

Segment 2 - Berlin: Ossie & Wessie Marriages
Michael Graichen has been snooping into the private lives of the the citys mixed East/West couples and found the devils in the details.

Segment 3 - Is Underage Marriage in Roma Culture or Crime?
Gyula and Marika are a Roma couple who atypically married for love. What makes them near outcasts is their work to end child marriage. Frank Browning reports from Pec, Hungary.
A fascinating article on child marriage amongst the Roma, written from the point of view of a Roma academic. The article is published by the European Roma Rights Center.

Segment 4 - Largest Indian Wedding Fair Outside India
Louise Williams visits a South Asian wedding fair in London.
Here's a link to this year's Asian Wedding Fair in Britian.

Segment 5 - Home of St. Valentine Celebrates
St. Valentine is actually San Valentino, the patron saint of the Italian city of Terni. So, how did St. Valentine become the international symbol for amore?
Dany Mitzman reports….
This official site of Terni and Valentine celebrations.

Want to comment? You do that below.

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A Lesson in Restraint

European arrogance versus Islamic intolerance. I’m not going to go over the details of the cartoon issue, by now you’ve heard it all and surely, most of us who have not taken sides must conclude that this has not been humanity’s finest hour. However, there is another, stranger side issue affecting us journalists: why it didn’t happen in the rest of “The West”.

I’m a European journalist. Like many of my colleagues around the continent, I have had to contend with fact that my superiors have chosen to reprint one of the cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad on our website, presumably as an expression of freedom of speech and out of solidarity with the Jyllands Posten, the Danish daily that initially and published them. Not to be outdone, Europe’s rabble rousing Arab European League, the AEL, is publishing a cartoon every day in an effort to “break many taboos in Europe”. Above you can see part of one depicting Anna Frank in bed with Hitler. There’s more to it, but I assure you, it’s as tasteful as it sounds.

But here’s the thing. While we Europeans were busy fanning the flames of unrest in the name of free speech, over in the Anglo Saxon world they were exercising taste, restraint and maturity with almost no sensational publications. Huh? I thought Karl Rove had vivisected the backbone out the American press. I thought the British press was still reeling from the Hutton report. And, hey, don't commercial considerations trump conviction every time over there? Apparently not. So what do they know that we don’t?

I think it’s this: a history of immigration. Countries like the United States, Canada, Australia, and even Britain, have long made peace with the idea that they are destinations of immigration. Successful, ethnically mixed societies know that cultural sensitivity is a prerequisite to order and function and that there is strength in diversity. In other words, they are an ethnic quilt of colors living alongside one another, if not together, and that’s OK.

This is why in the U.S. Sikhs wear green turbans on St. Patrick’s Day and intermarriage amongst different kinds of Caucasian groups is widespread. Britain is awash in South Asian culture. How is this possible? Decades of civil rights struggles starting with women, followed by blacks and continued by every other group. It may not have lead to racial paradise, but it has created awareness that all of society’s institutions must walk a fine line if there is to be peace. The Jyllands Posten crossed that line it will take us long time to find our way back.

If you must see Radio Netherlands’s use of the cartoon and the article with it, click here. In the interest of balance, here is also the website of AEL, which has an equally, if not more, offensive cartoon depicting Anne Frank and Hitler in bed together.

Technological Takeup

To the left a DIY HIV test.

A technological grab bag in this week's EuroQuest. No rhyme or reason, just new tech or tech related items. Check it out.


Segment 1 - EU Parliament Website
If we are to believe the most recent EuroBarometers, 3 out of 4 EU citizens dont trust most of the European bodies. Which is one reason why the European Parliament has a launched a new website. It aims to be accessible and transparent. Cordelia Hebblethwaite reports from Brussels.
Click here to actually see the website of the European Parliament.

Segment 2 - DIY HIV Test
What if you think you might be HIV positive, but are too scared to go to the doctor to find out? Medical professionals are urging people who are worried about possible risks they may have run, to take a test. For those who don’t want to go to the doctor, there is a solution. Thijs Westerbeek reports.
Thijs made an excellent web article on the subject. Check it out!

Segment 3 - Milipol
A few months ago, France held one of the world’s largest homeland security fairs. In times of increasing fears over terrorist attacks, the exhibition and its armored vehicles and 007 type gadgets are more popular than ever. Jan Van der Made reports from the Milipol.
This year's Milipol will be in Qatar. Gun nuts please click here.

Segment 4 - The Next Einstein
Germany ranked below average in the OSCE’s PISA study benchmarking educational systems throughout Europe. But some people are doing something about it. Ben Fajzullin reports from Duesseldorf.
Last year was the 100th anniversary of the death of Albert Einstein. The commemorative site is still active. Click here for a link to the OSCE's PISA Study.

Segment 5 - Winter Blues Lamps
2% of Northern Europeans suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder. In London, the technology is finally catching on and people have been visiting a special light lounge to try to lift their spirits. Michaela Graichen has been trying it out.
The American Mental Health Association has an excellent description of SAD.

Click here to download this week's program as a high quality mp3.

This One's for the Ladies

At right, Hedy d'Ancona: a "lady".

That's right, this week's EuroQuest looks at the ladies. Ladies who politicize, learn to read, get painted, look at paintings, poeticize, prostitute themselves and reminisce about the bad old days before today's incomplete emancipation. That’s right, this one’s for the ladies.


Segment 1 - Hedy d’Ancona: Dutch Feminist A profile of Dutch minister/europarlementarian/outspoken feminist Hedy d’Ancona.
Hedy has even earned her own Wiki in English. Click here for more...

Segment 2 - Push to Keep Girls in School in Turkey Thanks to a new initiative backed by UNICEF and the World Bank there are a lot more girls in Turkish classrooms. Dorian Jones reports on the initiative from rural South-East Turkey where it’s estimated up to 40% of girls have never seen the inside of a classroom.
Click here to go to Turkey's UNICEF information campaign for girls.

Segment 3 - Portraits of 19th-Century Black People in Britain An exhibition in Manchester called Black Victorians shows that there were many more black people who enjoyed a higher profile than has been generally realized. Sylvia Smith visited the temporary collection of sketches, statues, oil paintings and photographs.
A separate blog entry is coming on this feature later in the week.

Segment 4 - Sexual Politics: The History of Women in the Office in Britain Since women started working in offices in the 19th century, their role has changed beyond recognition. Louise Williams went along to The Women’s Library in central London to visit an exhibition – called, what else: Office Politics.

Segment 5 - Heidi Klum and World Cup Thousands and thousands of journalists will attend the world cup this summer, three million visitors are expected, thousands of police officers are mobilized for security, and thousands of...prostitutes are ready too. And this is causing a bit of controversy. Zulfikar Abbany comments.
Official site of the World Cup 2006 in Deutschland

Click here to download this week's program as a high quality mp3.