EuroQuest EuroBlog

The End of the Quest

2006-12-25T22:16:00.000+01:00

Yes indeed. It's the last EuroQuest ever!!!

You can listen to the last program here.

Well, it's been a great run with the show playing on hundreds of stations around the world for the better part of a decade and covering literally thousands of subjects. I basically learned how to make proper radio producing this program and so I leave it with some regret.

We are moving onto bigger and better things here at Radio Netherlands Worldwide and so stay tuned for a program called "The State We're In" looking at state of humanity each and every Saturday starting in May.

To those of you who listened radio program each week, I thank you for listening and promise even better things soon. I hope you enjoyed the programs and we'll see you in the new year.

Just in case you're wondering, this blog will no longer be updated.

Cheers, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,

Jonathan

Christmas Pleasures and an Important Announcement

2006-12-18T15:26:00.000+01:00

Before I get into the nitty gritty details of this week's show, a special announcement:

At the end of this year EuroQuest, and this blog, will cease to be. After around 600 shows 3000 items 300 hours of radio, EuroQuest is coming to an end. Next week, a great show looking at 11 years of the quest entitled, what else: The End of the Quest. More on that next week.

Now, to get back to the task at hand....

Segment 1 - Belgian Wine
Jonathan Groubert and Brussels correspondent Vanessa Mock discuss the northerly high quality wines of Belgium and the attempts by the European Union to make the wine industry more competetive.

Segment 2 - The King of Tavolara
Dany Mitzman interviews Tonino, King of the island of Tavolara, just off the Sardinian Coast.

Segment 3 - Irish Pub Smoking Ban One Year On
Lars Bevanger looks at the success of the total ban on public smoking in Ireland back in 2004.

Segment 4 - Santa Lives in Sweden...or was it Finland?
As you lick the envelope to send your gift wish list off to Santa, remember, he does not live at the North Pole, he lives in Finland; or was it Sweden? No wait...it’s Norway! Or was it? Radio Sweden looks into where Santa can be located on his downtime.

Download this week's program as an mp3

Art: new and renewed

2006-12-12T20:56:00.000+01:00

This week: a different look at the arts.

Stay tuned in the coming days for some important news about EuroQuest.

Segment 1 - The Study of Sound
Berlin’s University of the Arts has just opened up a new degree course in Sound Studies. Sound Studies is a very appealing idea to us radio makers and so Berlin resident independent producer Cinnamon Nippard went for a look, I mean, a listen.

Segment 2 - The Rise of the Lithuanian Film Industry (not in Newshole Edition)
Lithuania is a highly skilled and inexpensive alternative to filming in London or Los Angeles. Now they’re filming a new movie about the life of Pope John Paul II and Sabina Casagrande was there.

Segment 3 - Treating Gaming Addiction
Smith and Jones is an Amsterdam clinic that has opened Europe’s first treatment center for gaming addicts. The clinic’s director told Fiona Campbell that about 1 million youngsters are susceptible to getting seriously hooked in Holland alone.

Segment 4 - Greatest Yeats Exhibition Opens in Dublin
A major exhibition just opened in Dublin where you can learn about Yeats’ life, loves, his surprisingly active interest in the occult and yes, there’s even some poetry. Louise Williams drew inspiration in Dublin.

Click here to download the program as an mp3

Trafficked!

2006-12-06T13:34:00.000+01:00

This program is a repeat from last February

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.

Download the program as a high quality mp3

SEX....and consequences

2006-11-28T16:46:00.000+01:00

A very sexy EuroQuest this week, but not without something to think about! Read on....

Segment 1 - Red Light District Still Black (content advisory)
RNs Dutch Affairs Editor Saskia van Reenen looks at the reality of legalized prostitution in the Netherlands. The assumption was that legalization would benefit the prostitutes get them better, safer working conditions.
But according to prostitutes organization The Red Thread, shady, semi-legal "escort bureaus" are now taking the place of the legalized brothels, and sex workers are no better off than they were before.

Segment 2 - Forced Prostitution in Germany
At the time of the world cup there were fears that as many as 40,000 sex slaves would be trafficked to Germany to take advantage of the event. Mike Mühlberger reports that the International Organization found it was impossible to put an exact figure on trafficking.

Segment 3 - Feminist Porn in Berlin (content advisory)
Some feminists argue that women actually like porn, that is why some female industry insiders are getting behind the camera - to reclaim their positions in front of it.Cinnamon Nippard reports from the first Porn Film Festival held in Berlin.

Segment 4 - The Emotional Consequences of Terminating an Abnormal Fetus
A Dutch report concludes that parents who decide to terminate their pregnancy because of a serious birth defect of the fetus often experience serious feelings of doubt, failure and guilt. Barry Thorne investigates the trauma of the medical abortion of a much-wanted child.

Download this program as an mp3

Back to Belsen Part 2

2006-11-21T12:56:00.000+01:00

This week, Berthe Meijer and 70 other Dutch Bergen Belsen survivors return to the remains of the camp to inaugaurate a memorial plaque that some feel comes decades too late. Plus, a mini integration theme with a look at Dublin's ever increasing Polish population and a story of how Italy is integrating its Chinese community.

Segment 1 - Back to Belsen Part 2
Berthe Meijer is a holocaust survivor. Last week she told us how, in 1943, in Nazi occupied Holland, she, her sister, mother and father were rounded up by the Nazi’s and sent to Camp Westerbork in the Netherlands and then on to Bergen Belsen in Germany where she would spend the rest of the war. Last month, 61 years later, she and 69 other Dutch survivors returned to the site of the camp to inaugurate a new Dutch memorial. Today Berthe is going back to Belsen.

Segment 2 - Warsaw on the Liffey: Polish Immigrants in Ireland
When the EU took in ten new members in 2004, Ireland was one of only three countries to open its borders right away to workers from these states. Since then, about a quarter of a million immigrants flooded into an Irish population of only about four million. Perro de Jong tried to find out what has become of the newest Irish residents.

Segment 3 - Chinese Integrate to Italy
Dany Mitzman saw first hand how an organization based in the small town of Carpi, near Modena, has been running a project for contacting and legalizing Chinese businesses.

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3

Back to Belsen Part 1

2006-11-14T23:52:00.000+01:00

Something different this week. Most of the program is devoted to a woman named Berthe Meijer. Berte is a holocaust survivor. In 1943, in Nazi occupied Holland, she, her sister, mother and father were rounded up by the Nazi’s and sent to Camp Westerbork in the Netherlands and then onto Bergen Belsen in Germany where she would spend the rest of the war. When the Russian Army freed her in 1945, she was just 7 years old. Berte tells her story. It is the story of the horrors of the holocaust, told through the eyes of child. Next week Berte, along with 70 other survivors, return to Belsen for the first time in 61 years, to inaugurate a new Dutch memorial.

Segment 2 - Lithuanian School of Yiddish
The University of Vilnius’s Yiddish Institute was the first Yiddish center of higher learning to be established in post-Holocaust Eastern Europe. It is working to preserve and further the East European Jewish language and culture. Sabina Casagrande went for a visit.

Listen to this week's program as a high quality mp3

The Far Out Far Right

2006-11-09T16:50:00.000+01:00

At right, Jean Marie le Pen is running for President of France again. Does the far right candidate stand a chance of winning, or at least upsetting the election like he did last time? No one knows of course, but sometimes it seems like all of Europe is rushing rightwards. We discuss in this week's show.

Segment 1 - After French Law and Pamuk’s Win, Turkey Lurches to the Right
Turkey correspondent Dorian Jones discusses with Jonathan Groubert how Orhan Pamuks Nobel Prize win and the new French bill making it illegal to suggest that Turkey did NOT commit the genocide of a million Armenians have made Turkeys politics lurch to the right.

Segment 2 - How Far Out Are the Dutch Far Right?
Jonathan and Hague correspondent Andy Clark discuss the bevy of colorful characters populating the new Dutch right as they compete for seats in next Dutch parliamentary elections.

He of the Mozart hair. At left, far right policitian Geert Wilders will try to take his and even more parliamentary seats in this month's Dutch elections.

Segment 3 - Why the Extreme Right Wing Is So Popular in Flanders
The extreme right wing party Vlaams Belang or Flemish interest partyregularly gets over 30% of the Flemish electorate voting for them. Jonathan and Belgian political commentator Stefan Walrave discuss their success.

Segment 4 - Jean Marie Le Pen Ready for French Election
RFI reporter Hannah Godfrey asks if National Front leader, Jean Marie Le Pen, can succeed in the next French election.

Segment 5 - A Musical Look at Reforming the UN (not available in Newshole Version)
Our Barry Thorne has been hearing some very different music about what direction the UN should be going in.

Download this week's show as an mp3

Sorry about the delay!

2006-11-09T09:02:00.000+01:00

I'll post the show some time later today!
My apologies!

Questions of Morality

2006-10-31T12:58:00.000+01:00

At right, Internet hipsters

This week guest host and producer Daniel Frankl and Sarah Johnson examine questions of morality facing Europe today.

Fighting for the right to say No
The Desertion rate within the British forces has doubled since start of the Iraq war in 2003. Lars Bevanger listens to the story of one deserter having to fight his conscience as well as the enemy.
The Washington Post has a roundup of the coverage on this issue.

Questions of conscience in Turkey
In Turkey every man has to serve 18 months in the army. While normally an honor, a small group of new objectors are standing up and ending up behind bars. Dorian Jones takes up the story of one individual.

Norway’s (Paradise) Prison
Around 110 male prisoners live on the island of Bastøy in excellent conditions. As Guy Degen reports, they are given an extraordinary degree of freedom, trust and responsibility.
Another interesting article on the prison.

The Open Enclosed Nuns
The nuns of the Matris Domini Convent in Italy are bringing a new meaning to the word Enclosed. In fact they are now taking one giant virtual leap into the outside world, all the way into cyber space! Dany Mitzman reports.
Yes, of course, they have a site.

Download this program as an mp3

EuroFauna

2006-10-24T17:21:00.000+02:00

Delicious intruder: the Red King Crab

Or should it be called "Animals Gone Wild".
Guest host Daniel Frankl and producer Sarah Johnson provide you with a selection of stories about our spiny, furry, shelled friends. Enjoy.

Segment 1 - Underwater Advance of the Red King Crab
Armies of Red King Crabs are marching westwards along Norway’s coast, devouring everything, upsetting fishermen & environmentalists. But, as Lars Bevanger reports, they are as mouth-watering as they are controversial.
Concern from the Norwegian Foreign Ministry.

Segment 2 - Festival of the Snail
Every summer, the people of Casumaro hold a huge snail festival – the sagra della lumaca – attracting visitors from all over Italy and beyond. Dany Mitzman was there.

Segment 3 - Pig Heaven
Dafne Westerhof runs the so-called "Promised Land for Pigs" in Amsterdam. She believes that its possible to communicate with pigs, and that they are good for our stress levels. Anne Blair Gould set off to pig heaven.

Segment 4 - Cow Cuddling
A farming family in the Dutch countryside is offering their cows up for a cuddle. Queenie Scholtes went down to join in on one of their group cuddling sessions.

Click here to download the program as an mp3

Alienation in an Alien Nation

2006-10-17T21:18:00.001+02:00

At left, a screen shot from the film Submission. It's director, Theo van Gogh, was consequently murdered by the Dutch born Moroccan Muslim, Mohammed Bouyeri.

How do young Muslim men, born and bread in Europe, become fundamentalists? We discuss in this week's EuroQuest.

Segment 1 - Muslim Radicalization Expert Atef Handy: Part 1
Jonathan Groubert interviews Muslim Radicalization Expert Atef Handy, who wrote a report on how Dutch born Muslims turn against society and embrace Muslim fundamentalism.

Segment 2 - Ahmed Dadou Pleads the Case of Holland’s Young Moroccan Male
No part of the Dutch Muslim community is more maligned that the young Moroccan male. Jonathan Groubert asks Ahmed Dadou, an articulate spokesman for the Dutch Moroccan Community, what he thought was alienating his peers.

Segment 3 - Muslim Radicalization Expert Atef Handy: Part 2
Jonathan Groubert interviews Muslim Radicalization Expert Atef Handy: Part 2

Segment 4 - German Islam Summit/Mozart Opera
The German government met Muslim community officials for the first Islam summit. It was billed as a rational discussion meant to enhance relations and improve the integration of Muslims into German society. And then, it all got a bit weird.

Segment 5 - Indigene
A new film telling the story of North Africans who fought to liberate France in World War Two, is opening up a forgotten chapter in French history. Alasdair Sanford went to see the film.

Download the program as an mp3

European Disunion

2006-10-10T20:17:00.000+02:00

At right: Worth the money? The European Parliament in Strasbourg.

It used to be only the British who were the Euroskeptics. Now it seems to be a sport open to all. Does the EU have a future or is the game over? European Disunion in this week's EuroQuest.

Segment 1 - RNW’s Brussels Correspondent Discusses EU Disunity
Jonathan Groubert and Brussels correspondent Vanessa Mock mull over the causes and consequences of the current crisis in confidence in the EU.

Segment 2 - Swedish MEP Campaigns to Get Euro Parliament Out of Strasbourg
The European Parliament is located in Brussels. It also spends 4 days a month in Strasbourg. The OneSeat campaign this is a great waste of time and money. Jonathan Groubert speaks to Swedish Member of European Parliament Cecilia Malmstrom , of OneSeat.

Segment 3 - Will Turkey Ever Join the EU?
Jonathan Groubert discusses the countrys recent disinterest in joining the EU with Turkey correspondent Dorian Jones.
Turkey EU Accession bid site.

Segment 4 - Is Spain’s EU Love Affair Over?
Now structural funds from the EU are about to head east to the new and even poorer member states like Hungary and Poland, Danny Wood wonders out loud if Spaniards think that the best days of their relationship with Europe are over?
Spain's page at the EU's official Web Site.

Download the program as a high quality mp3

EYE SPY!!!

2006-10-03T22:48:00.000+02:00

Should governments spy on their citizens? Is giving up some freedom in the name of security worth it? This week's EuroQuest wonders out loud if European governments are spying on their own citizens in the same way the American government has attempted in NSA spying scandal.

Cees Hamelink on European Personal Spying Part 1
Jonathan Groubert interviews Internet privacy expert and ethicist Professor Cees Hamelink of the University of Amsterdam on new European surveillance laws.

French Privacy under Pressure
RFI’s Alice Moss investigates the problematic elements of new French anti-terrorism security measures.

Hamelink on European Personal Spying Part 2
Cees Hamelink returns, comments on the French situation and discusses the ethics of potential new European-wide security measures.

Russian Dissdent Claims Russia is Ruled by Spies
Former Soviet dissident Vladimir Bukovsky explains why he thinks Russia is being run by the security services. And how the war in Chechnya got them there. The interview was conducted by Margreet Strijbos and produced by Jonathan Groubert.

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3.

Feel free to comment below

Singing the Praises

2006-09-26T20:25:00.000+02:00

Songs with an unexpected religious twist in this week's show. At left, she's sexy; she's hip hop; she's klezmer! She's Sophie Solomon and she's making Klezmer kinda...well...hot!

Madonna Concert Deemed Blasphemous by Dutch Christians
A Pew Study on European Values says just 21% of Europeans say religion is "very important" to them. So, if that’s the case, why did Dutch Protestants protest a recent Madonna concert? Jonathan Groubert reports...
Read more on this here....

French Evangelicals
Promising miracles, joyful gospel singing and rebaptisms, the Evangelical and Charismatic churches are growing and growing. One American preacher just finished a week in Paris. The meetings were unprecedented both in size and in style. Alison Hird pulled up a pew.

Turkish Islamic Pop
Yeshil, the latest Turkish music craze, joins pious Islam with wicked guitar licks. Dorian Jones meets the king of Yeshil pop in Istanbul. And asks what this unlikely musical fusion says about modern Turkey.

Vienna Boys’ Choir Sing Talking Heads
The Vienna Boys Choir is steeped in tradition. But as Louise Potterton recently heard with her own ears, a more modern sound has been wafting from the eaves of the baroque palace where the boys live and rehearse.

Klezmer the New Cool: Sophie Solomon
Currently on tour with her new band in Europe, Cinnamon Nippard caught up with violinist Sophie Solomon who fearlessly joins Hip Hop with Klezmer.

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

The Price at the Pump

2006-09-19T15:09:00.000+02:00

This is how this week's program germinated. It was pretty simple really. I filled up my 13 year old Renault 19's tank with gas, it was particularly empty, and saw the counter soar up to 60 Euros! That's $75 folks! I got pissed off. I wanted answers. And I got some. This week: The Price at the Pump.

The Expert Says Oil Prices are Right
The top 5 oil companies combined made 112 billion dollars last year. At the same time, they’re claiming to be in trouble. What’s going on here? Jonathan Groubert asks Dr. Coby van der Linden of the Clingendael Energy Institute why the price at the pump is so high.
Click here to go to the site of the Clingendael Energy Institute
Royal Dutch Shell's Sustainability Reports

Environmentalist Spins Oil Profits
Jonathan Groubert interviews Hannah Griffiths, Royal Dutch Shell expert at the environmental group, Friends of the Earth. She points out that oil company profits

Norway’s Arctic Oil Bonanza
Norway is exploiting new gas fields in the Barents Sea, much to the consternation of environmentalists and joy of the locals. Lars Bevanger reports from Lillehammer.

Segment 4 - Baku Tbilisi Ceyhan Pipeline Opens
Americans outflanking the Russians. Wars in the Caucuses. Turkey currying favor with the EU. Jonathan Groubert interviews Dorian Jones about the woes and benefits of Turkeys part in the oil pipeline that hopes to avoid the Middle East and sideline Russia.

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3

The Last Best of the Quest: Letting the Past Catch Up

2006-09-13T09:59:00.000+02:00

And we should let the past catch up with us. Case in point: Warsaw's massive Palace of Culture and Science. A prime example of Socialist Realist architecture that is so instantly recognizable in former Soviet satellites. It was a gift to Poland from Joseph Stalin. As a result, many were as ambivalent about it as Romanian's were about Ceaucescu's Palace (see post Nov. 21). Remember all those scenes from spy movies or newsreels of party gatherings in gigantic auditoriums? Warsaw's is here. When Pope John Paul II decided to make his move and give a speech in support of the Solidarity Labor Movement in the 80s, he did that in the square in front of this building, taking advantage of its obvious symbolism.

Once it dominated the city, but today it shares the skyline with modern steel and glass towers. This thing is, it's still a great building. And it has secrets waiting to be explored.

Did you know there's a Museum of Technology in there? It is massive and deceptive. At first I walked in fully expecting to see a laughable holdover from the socialist past. And indeed, I chuckled at the ancient, cracked display cases that must have looked outdated the day they were put up. The signs were stained, hand written Polish with the odd misspelled English word. But as I walked from room to room, I began to realize that this Museum had a rare and utterly complete collection of technologies. Oh yes, there was the requisite emphasis on factories, but in the form gigantic working scale models.

Another section boasted a collection of computers, from a Commodore 64 to a Kray supercomputer and socialist models totally unknown in the West. Strolling through a section on historical typewriters, I nearly whizzed past an enigma device, the German encoder/decoder so important during WWII.

Today they are opening a Museum of Communism. I can think of no more fitting place to let the past catch up.
You can hear more about it in last week's EuroQuest.

Segment 1 - British Public Service announcements
Does the public really need instructions on the proper operation of a handkerchief? The British government thought so back in 1945 and produced a film on that and other so-called public service matters. The British national archive has pooled together a number of these films and has placed them online. Want to see them for yourself? Click here.

2 - The Slovak Artist and Vincent van Gogh
Thousands of people have made pilgrimages to the house in Nuenen, where Vincent van Gogh grew up. But only one of them has actually met Vincent, in a way. Helene Michaud tells the weird and wonderful tale of the two Vincents.

Segment 3 - Warsaw Palace of Culture Revisited
The Palace of Culture in Warsaw, with its monstrous size and audacious architecture, is a tourist attraction and a moneymaker. But, as Michal Kubicki explains, it was a gift from Josef Stalin, meant to glorify socialism.

Please click here to download the program in high quality:
The Podcast of EuroQuest can be downloaded at:
PodNova
And the Yahoo Podcast Beta
As always, you can leave comments
below.

Best of the Quest Part 5 = Living Apart Together Part 2

2006-09-05T18:18:00.001+02:00

The Red Head Dead? The End of the Red Head? Can it be? Read On.

Segment 1 - French ‘Grande Ecole’ Recruits Minorities
Five years ago France’s Institute of Political Studies decided it was time to change the resolutely white, upper class profile of its student body, and reach out to the untouchables of French society. Frank Browning filed this profile of the Institute.
Science-Po's Official Site

Segment 2 - Colonial France Rehabilitated?
French colonialism still has repercussions to this day. After all, many of the young men burning cars in the French suburbs were the sons of immigrants from the former empire. So, should France be proud of its colonial past? Nick Champeaux reports.

Segment 3 - Germans Have Hard Time Integrating to Holland
Mira Peeters from the University of Nijmegen wrote her doctoral thesis on the integration of German immigrants. She found that most Germans have a hard time feeling Dutch, and that the Dutch themselves aren’t really helping. Thijs Westerbeek reports.
Interesting discussion continues on the EXPATICA web site.

Segment 4 - End of the Red Head?
Can it really be true that, as a result of migration and ethnic mixing, there will be no redheads in 50 years time? Kathy Clugston spoke with dr. Eric Sistemans.
Kathy wrote an article with picture of people with genuinely red hair!

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3

Best of the Quest: Living Apart Together Part 1

2006-08-29T11:42:00.000+02:00

We're "Living Apart Together" in this week's EuroQuest....or alongside or in parallel or whatever. The point is...we are not actually communicating or commisserating or whatever. Take Cyprus. That island has been divided since 1974. It seems that, for some, this division has become a state of being and end in itself, rather than a temporary blip in the island's long history. While it seems most on both sides want to see this state of affairs ended, Cyprus is proof that a status quo is hard to shake loose. But, sometimes, an odd but outstanding event comes along that makes people think and adds to the drumbeat for change. One of those events is in this week's EuroQuest. Listen and enjoy.

Segment 1 - The Last Yugoslavs
Jonathan Groubert tells the story of his first visit to Belgrade and an ethnically surprising tour of the biggest Orthodox church in the Balkans.

At right, Sveti Sava, the bitggest Orthodox Church in the
Balkans.

Segment 2 - Turkey’s Armenian Orphans Dorian Jones goes with a Turkish filmmaker as she researches the history or of one of those orphans -- her grandmother.

Segment 3 - Cypriot Musical Colloboration Unites Divided City The Mediterranean Island of Cyprus has been divided ever since the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974. It is precisely this divide that was the subject of a recent musical collaboration between Greek and Turkish Cypriot musicians. Tabitha Morgan was there.

Segment 4 - French Boarding School for Kids from the Projects Ever since the riots, much thought has been given to what can be done about the ennui amongst the immigrant youth in the French housing projects. One solution is boarding schools for the poor. John Laurenson reports from Lyons.

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

As always, you can leave comments below.

Man's Best Buddy

2006-08-24T07:40:00.001+02:00

Buddies of all shapes, sizes and species! At right that means the Norwegians at Longyearbyen on the near Arctic island of Svalbard (at right) and their Russian neighbors at Barentsburg (lower left). Two very different places, yet somehow they manage to meet, in a cultural kind of way.

Segment 1 - Burger Buddies
The Dutch Burger Buddy project pairs those in power with those on the street, in the hope that small personal contacts will help further understanding. Harry te Riele told Louise Dunne why he volunteered to buddy with, in his case, a civil servant.
The program's site is in Dutch, but if you're interested, here it is...

Segment 2 - Warm Neighbors in a Cold, Cold Place
Lars Bevanger reports on how the peoples of the modern and extraordinarily affluent Norwegian town of Longyearbyen and the poor Russian mining town of Barentsburg overcome economic and political barriers through an exchange of culture.
The Svalbard Pages!

Segment 3 - Dolphin Therapy for Autism Sufferers
Dolphins can help children with Down’s syndrome and autism to concentrate and develop cognitive and social skills. A Dutch project has begun to prove the effectiveness of this ‘dolphin-aided’ therapy. Thijs Westerbeek has more.

Segment 4 - Luxury Dog Kennels
For many people, when it come to one’s pet, nothing is too expensive, nothing is too rare, too good for one’s pet. So when it’s time to take that well-earned break, why not send your canine surrogate child on a holiday of its own. Penny Young went along to see for herself.
Want to book? Here's the site of the Third Bridge Holiday Home for Dogs...

Click here to download as a high quality mp3

I'm Back!

2006-08-24T07:31:00.000+02:00

Ostrog, an Orthodox monestary built into the side of a mountain, just north of the Montenegran capital Podgorica. Not only is it ancient and eerie, but to get there you have to drive up the single most dangerous road I've ever been on. Worth the trip, but not for the fainthearted.

I'm back from Montenegro and Bosnia where I holidayed and visited my inlaws respectivley. Fascinating places nearly devoid of easy Internet access (get to work on that guys). This explains last week's rather meager posting. But it's business as usual this week.

End of holiday special!

2006-08-16T11:47:00.001+02:00

I,m in Montenegro struggling with this Slavic keyboard, so no extra info this week. I,m going back to the beach. Hope your holiday is heavenly. I know mine,s been interesting.

Segment 1 - Dutch Caravan CrazeWherever you drive through Europe, there they are, the family car straining to pull a massive camper up the Alps, through the Provence, and down to the Spanish Coasts. All Europeans do it, but none more so than the Dutch. Jonathan Groubert reports.-

Segment 2 - Camping and Nudity Go Well Together in Germany
In Germany, nudism is a normal part of camping. Mike Mühlberger explains and visits a few campgrounds himself. Aren’t you glad this is radio?

Segment 3 - Bulgaria: Up and Coming Holiday DestinationBulgaria’s subtropical Black Sea Coast has created a building boom. But environmentalists there claim vast areas of natural beauty are being ruined. Malcolm Brabant put on his skivvies and filed this story.

Segment 4 - La Rentree: the French Get Back to WorkIf you are in France just don’t try to get anything done in August. The French have checked out while the tourists checked in. But they’re back. Well, kind of. Marjorie van Halteren explains…

End of Holiday Special

2006-08-16T11:47:00.000+02:00

The Best of the Quest Part 1: Sound Advice

2006-08-09T00:08:00.000+02:00

A bunch of blowhards...

I'm away for the month of August and part of September so enjoy this 6 part series of repeats known as the "Best of the Quest"! This week a second chance to hear the program themed "Sound Advice". Don't forget to comment and...enjoy!

The Evolution of Music
How did we go from the songs of Gibbons to Beethoven’s 5th Symphony? And for what evolutionary reason? Madeline Amberger attempts to answer while attending “From Perception to Performance”, the second international conference on the neurosciences and music.

Recorders Made Exciting
Can the recorder be exotic and sexy? The Quartet New Generation, or QNG, a recorder collective, is trying to break down stereotypes about contemporary classical music. Sarah Elzas has this profile.
The QNG has a wonderful site as does Sarah Elzas.

The Haunting Song of the Sami
Jana Mange is a member of Sweden’s indigenous Sami and also one of Sweden’s few professional singers of Joik or traditional Sami songs. She tells Radio Sweden all about the Joik tradition.
Folksy Links has a compendium of Nordic Music for the enthusiast.

Romanian Noise Pollution
Radio Romania’s Iulian Muresan explains how Bucharest’s development has turned into a noisy din. Its the kind of noise that can even damage your health.
Iulian Muresan's day job is at Radio Romania International.

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3 file!

Pedophilia

2006-08-01T23:32:00.000+02:00

Are these gentlemen, the leaders of the Dutch political group the Party for Love, Freedom and Brotherly Love, brave beacons of democracy or just plain old pedophiles? Listen to this week's program and decide for yourself.

Segment 1 - Release of Pedophile Causes Irish Controversy
Protests in front of the Irish Parliament follow a High Court decision to allow early release from jail of a pedophile. For EuroQuest, Louise Williams was at the day of protest in Dublin.

Segment 2 - Fighting Child Porn on the Internet
Reporting of child porn on the Internet has increased. But at the same time child porn on the web is becoming more extreme and the culprits are finding ways to hide porn sites from the police. Cormac Callanan of the organization Inhope, says there’s no telling how much child porn is on the Internet.
Click here for a link to Inhope

Segment 3 - Polygraphy in the Fight Against Child Pornography
Since the beginning of this year the lie detector has become a regular tool used in sex offender therapy in the Netherlands. Critics say the lie detector can’t be trusted and so the method should not be used. Michel Walraven reports.

Segment 4 - Holland’s Pedophilia Party
Martijn Uitenbogaard and his new Party for Brotherly love, freedom and diversity, want to work to reduce the age of consent in the Netherlands from 16 to 12. I asked Martijn Uitenbogaard exactly why he decided to openly take this issue on…
The party has a website. It is all in Dutch...

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3

Dark Entertainment, Light Entertainment

2006-07-25T15:31:00.000+02:00

Holy C....oh well you get it!
(having problems getting Blogger to upload images so no pictures of pretty cows like I planned, but wouldn't the above joke have been funny if I had? Not really.)
As always you can leave comments, dark or light, below...

Segment 1 - The Italian Terroist & the French Intelligensia
In France, a real life terrorist-turned-crime-writer has just published a new book -On the Run- which he acutally is. John Laurenson looks into Cesare Battisti’s appeal from Paris…
There are numerous articles about Mr. Battisti's doings. Most is in Italian or French. The best in English, however, is at Wikipedia.

Segment 2 - The dark side of Turkish reality TV
A Turkish reality TV star was found dead in a hotel room of a suspected drug overdose. Serious questions are being raised as to whether such programs really are just harmless entertainment. Dorian Jones has more from Istanbul.
BBC Radio 4 has made an excellent documentary looking at the Sociology of Reality TV. It's worth a listen.

Segment 3 - London Symphony Orchestra Teaches Tots
The London Symphony Orchestra runs many educational outreach programs for children and adults. The class called ‘Early Years’ aims to bring music into the lives of children before they go to school. Kathy Clugston was there…
Coming up this week at the LSO you can learn to play the Balinese Gamelan!

Segment 4 - Cow Show Moooooves to Paris
The cow parade is the world’s largest art event. And it’s a moveable feast that has been exhibiting life-sized cows in cities all over the world for the last few years. Allison Hird viewed the herd, this time in Paris…
The Cow Parade has its own comprehensive site.

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3

Just for the Look of It!!!!!!!!

2006-07-18T13:01:00.000+02:00

At left, Rembrandt's "The Two Moors". This painting features in the most comprehensive study of black faces in Dutch art. See segment 3. By the by, this is also Rembrandt van Rijn's 400 th birthday. Radio Netherlands is celebrating with a contest. A big one actually. We're looking for the Rembrandt of our time. Click here for more details at the official Website.

Segment 1 - Fashion with a Mission
Many of the women at the Fashion with a Mission workshop in the Dutch city of Nijmegen were homeless until recently. Today they’re making serious designer stuff prêt a portez. Liesbeth de Bakker reports.
The site of Fashion with a Mission (In Dutch)

Segment 2 - Ozwald Boateng
For two decades, Ozwald Boateng has been changing the face of classic British tailoring. Here he tells our Sylvia Smith about where things stand with the Boateng Empire as they tour his bespoke.
Ozwald Boateng's Official Site (requires Flash)

Segment 3 - Rembrandt’s Blacks
Helene Michaud asks art historian Esther Schreuder about how Rembrandt portrayed black people in the 17th century by looking at his two most famous paintings featuring black characters: The Baptism of the Eunuch and The Two Moors.
Helene made a web article on Esther Schreuder's work for Radio Netherlands Afrique (who knew we had that?).

Segment 4 - Cézanne in Provence
To mark the centenary of the artist Paul Cézanne’s death, a large exhibition is open this summer in Aix en Provence, featuring his best-known paintings of the local landscape. Alasdair Sandford reports from Aix.
The Aix en Provence Tourism website has loads of info in English. They know how their bread is buttered.

Segment 5 - German Shoeshine Boy
Henning Gruebl, or as he’s better known, Germany’s Shoe Shine Boy, became inspired by shoeshining after a visit to Columbia. Dressed like a 1920s New York street urchin, Gruebl showed Sabina Casagrande the true meaning of clean.
Henning (here at right) is a modern kind of shoe shine boy. He has his own site and can even be booked via an online form. Oh the humanity!

Click here for a high quality mp3 of the program!

The Changing Face of the European Family

2006-07-11T13:53:00.000+02:00

I initially called the program the "troubled" European family. But that sounded to negative and judgemental. I think changing is more equitable, don't you? Leave a comment below.

Segment 1 - Dutch Mothers Don’t Work
They prefer to work part-time in order to be home with the kids, concludes a report by the Dutch Social and Cultural Planning Office. The Dutch situation is so out of step with the rest of Europe that Dutch mom Liesbeth de Bakker decided to investigate.
Liesbeth has written a report on the subject. You can find it here...

Segment 2 - Norway May Lead the Way in Childcare
Scandinavian parents view childcare outside the home as something healthy.
And this is something more Europeans had better start taking more seriously soon as Europeans are not having enough children. Lars Bevanger in Oslo investigates.
Click here for a website the Norwegian Government has created meant to explain their policy to Americans. Interesting they felt it necessary to do that.

Segment 3 - Domestic Violence on the Rise in N. Ireland
Domestic violence is on the rise in Ulster. This is why, every year, a group of women get together to draw attention to violence in the home. Louise Williams has more from Derry.
Probably the most important anti-domestic violence organization in Ulster is the Women's Aid Federation Northern Ireland.

Segment 4 - Gay Marriage Forces Spanish Rethink of the Family
A combination of modern life and progressive social legislation, in particular the legalization of gay marriage, has transformed the Spanish family in every conceivable way. Danny Wood has more from Madrid.
This has been written about widely, so the Wiki on the issue is, I think, a good starting point for further study.

Click here for a high quality mp3 of this week's show!!!!

Europe's Unwanted

2006-07-04T20:15:00.000+02:00

At left, a poster from 'La Blessure' a French film detailing the violations described in Segment 1. A haunting film, I'm told. I have yet to see it.

Our continent's tired, poor, huddled masses yearning to be....

Segment 1 - Welcome to France
A recent report by the Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner criticized the way the French authorities treat people seeking refugee status.
Download the Council of Europe report here...

Segment 2 - Dukhobor Exodus from Georgia
Civil war in Georgia sparked a dramatic exodus of the traditional Dukhobors back to Russia. Those who chose to remain say they now feel like a minority in their own villages. As Guy Degen reports, many Dukhobors are wondering whether to stay or go.
Did you know that many Dukhobors live in Canada? Click here for a link their community.
Segment 3 - Poverty Grows in the Netherlands
When the Internet bubble burst at the end of the 90s, so did the technogically driven Dutch economy. Kok Vroman, researcher at the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analyis, told his findings to our Michel Walraven.

Segment 4 - Cardboard Citizens
Nicola Fell reports on the Cardboard Citizens, the only professional homeless theatre in the UK and leaders in this field throughout the world.
The official site.

Click here for a high quality mp3 of this week's show....

Network Europe

2006-07-01T20:59:00.000+02:00

...gets a web site finally (although not a proper logo yet, but then again neither does EuroQuest). Regular listeners will have heard me mention them time and again as this informal consortium of European broadcasters have often provided me with material for the show. In return, they get to cherry pick from EuroQuest for own half hour long European Affairs program. It's an interesting construction with Deutshe Welle, RFI, Radio Sweden and now Radio Polonia rotating production duties. Results may vary...

Having said that, it has led to discussions of deepening the relationship. Even the comission has gotten interested. Saying more would be premature but it could be the start of something big....

Stay tuned...............

Communcation Breakdown

2006-06-27T11:39:00.000+02:00

What are we doing wrong? European Unity seems to be an ever more unpopular concept. Can we not do something to fix it? I'd like to hear your opinions. I promise to respond.

EU Apathy in France
Today, many French people remain suspicious of the EU’s direction and what they see as its free-market policies. The upside is Eurosceptiscm seems to be putting an end to a generation of political apathy in France. Alasdair Sandford has more from Paris.
Want all kinds of information about the EU at your fingertips? Try EuroStat!

Border Coffeeshops
The Belgium government is deeply unhappy about the growth of coffeeshops, where marijuana is sold, all along the Dutch/Belgian border. Remco de Jong has more from a coffeeshop in the Dutch border town with Belgium, Terneusen.
The last large Dutch government report on their (soft) drugs policy in PDF Format.

Eurostorytellers
Traveling through a European airport this summer, you might well come across some weird and wonderful sounds and languages in story form. That’s thanks to a new EU-backed project to whet people’s appetites for European languages. Vanessa Mock went along to Brussels Airport to find out more.
An organization whose ridiculous name I won't write out, but here's the acronym, CICEB, has organized the airport storytelling. Check it out.

Esperanto Radio from Poland
Helene Michaud meets WOJTEK VSAKIEWICZ or Adalberto of Radio Polonias Esperanto service. She asks him about the world of broadcasting in a so-called constructed language.
Multlingva Informcentro pri Esperanto
Radio Polonia in Esperanto

Click here to download this week's program in mp3 format

The Other Side of the Fence

2006-06-20T13:00:00.000+02:00

Today's EuroQuest has one side of the story, standing on tiptoes and peering over to the other side of the story and maybe seeing it their way, for just one second. Maybe they're living another lifestyle. Maybe they're moving country. Maybe they're trying not to hate. The other side of the fence in this week's EuroQuest.

Spiritual/Secular Struggle in Turkey
The shooting of two high court judges in Turkey prompted mass demonstrations. Tensions in the country have been steadily rising over concerns about the country’s direction. Dorian Jones has more from Istanbul.
Der Spiegel has a fantastic English language interview with Turkish writer/dissident Orhan Pamuk on the nature of Turkish secularism.

Polish Migrant Workers in Holland
The Dutch government took what measures it could to keep Polish workers out...but two years on, it’s clear that substantial numbers have nevertheless found their way to the Netherlands. Fiona Campbell takes up the story...down on the farm.

Belgian Asylum Seekers
Churches in Belgium are full because of an ongoing protest by thousands of asylum seekers wanting a general pardon and residence permits for all illegal immigrants. Some have even gone on hunger strike to press their point home. Remco de Jong looked for himself.

As an addendum to the two previous items, recent polls have show that there has been a steep rise in xenophobia in the Netherlands. Click here for the full Radio Netherlands article.

Jewish Muslim Friendship Bus
The Jewish Muslim Friendship group wants everyone to "get on the friendship bus": literally. It’s a bus, and it’s been on the road for the past year. Nick Champeaux recently flagged it down in the Parisian suburb of Nogent sur Marne.
Want to know more? Here's another article from CRIF- The Committee Representing the Jewish Institutions in France.

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

What a Waste!!!!!

2006-06-13T13:05:00.000+02:00

These gentlemen planted their recyclable mobile phone and grew a sunflower. If they can do it, so can we!

A program filled with some original ideas about how to limit waste. Plus a few warnings. Plus something about sausages.

Segment 1 - Eco Clothing
It seems the latest fashion trend is "Green" clothing. Naomi Fowler reports from London’s first comprehensive ethical fashion exhibition that’s trying to persuade designers and consumers to care about what you wear.
Click here for more on Eco Clothing info for the UK

Segment 2 - France to Bury Nuclear Waste
This is what the French are debating solutions to disposing their waste. But as Nick Champeaux reports, the option will not be burying it if the people of Bure, the proposed site, have something to say about it.

Segment 3 - Green Mobile Phones
It seems most of us put mobile phones in the bottom drawer for good after an average of only 18 months. But the thing is, they’re filled with plastic and heavy metals and, as Marnie Chesterton discovered, that’s becoming a serious problem.
Link to the Dead Ringers Exhibiton at the London Science Museum

Segment 4 - Cities and Water Use
If we’re to believe scientists, the melting icecaps will mean there’ll be too much water around. The problem is too little of it will be potable. Professor Huub Gijzen says it’s time for change in the way we use water.
For more info on the Switch project click here.

Bretzel Anyone?
Segment 5 - Kyle James on German Food
Kyle James opines about the options available to the millions of soccer fans from around the globe, currently searching for something to nosh on in Germany.

Download this week's program as a high quality mp3

Reconcilation in this Week's EuroQuest

2006-06-06T19:26:00.000+02:00

At left, the Basque separatist movement ETA announcing what it calls a permanent ceasefire. But how likely is that?

In a world filled with violence and acrimony, a program of unlikely reconciliatons.

Segment 1 - Poland Proves to be Israel’s Ally
Poland has developed a "special relationship" with Israel. A fifth of the Israeli population has roots in Poland. Democracy and membership of the EU have transformed Polish/Israeli relations as Radio Polonia’s Rafal Kiepuszewski reports.
Here's the original article from Radio Polonia.

Segment 2 - Theo Richmond on Polish Anti-Semitism
Theo Richmond is a British author of Konin: a Quest, in which he traces his own family history in a Jewish village in Poland. Here’s what he had to say about Jewish persecution in the West of Poland in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Here's a link to Theo Richmond's Page at Random House

Segment 3 - Armenian Resurgence
As Turkey is trying to join the EU, it is liberalizing all its minority laws. As a result, the sound of Armenian music and especially books by Armenian writers are reappearing. Rhoda Metcalfe speaks of a second awakening of Armenian culture in Istanbul.

Segment 4 - The ETA Ceasefire: Do They Really Mean It?
Last March, ETA made the announcement everybody was waiting for: a permanent ceasefire. There have been other ceasefires. But this time, as Christophe Schmidt reports from the region, most observers seem to think they mean it.
Wikipedia has a fantastically good page on ETA.
*Addendum: The conservative Popular Party just withdrew its backing for the peace process with ETA. Click here for a Reuters article.

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

A Little Iconoclasm Anyone?

2006-05-30T15:31:00.000+02:00

Actually, the theme is "Famous Infamy" No intro today. I think the items more or less speak for themselves. Enjoy!

Segment 1 - Beckett Centenniel
Remembrances and performances of his work are under way. In addition to plays such as Godot, Krapp’s Last Tape and Endgame, Beckett wrote novels, essays and poetry, as well.
This is the "homepage" of a man who probably would have despised the Internet.
My favorite play by him is Endgame.

Segment 2 - Popetown
The action in the animated series Popetown all takes place at the Vatican. And, as the name suggests, it doesn’t exactly paint the Catholic Church in the most positive light. Ben Fajzullin has more.
Even their website is a bit upsetting...and funny.

Segment 3 - Crown Witnesses to Fight the Dutch Mafia
The Dutch parliament has devised laws aimed at ensuring the proper use of crown witnesses... But as Perro de Jong reports, the debate will continue.
Link to a report by one our Radio Netherlands Dutch affairs correspondents.

Segment 4 - Star for a Day in Paris
Ever wondered what it feels like to be a star? Well now you no longer have to do anything special to get the taste of fame. In France, you can now BUY celebrity for a night. John Laurenson reports from Paris…

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3

Here on Earth Update

2006-05-29T10:00:00.000+02:00

Despite massive problems with Skype, I think the program went very well. A lot of good callers and excellent second guest: Marc Chavannes, journalist for the Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad, former Washington correspondent.
Click here to listen to the program in Real format.

Was this discussion useful/interesting/a dreadful bore from an awful blowhard? You can leave your comments below.

Groubert on Here on Earth - Wisconsin Public Radio

2006-05-25T11:44:00.000+02:00

I will be the featured guest on Wisconsin Public Radio's global call-in show "Here On Earth" this Sunday, 28 March at 2100 PM in Europe, 1900 UTC or 1400 (2PM) CST in the US. Host Jean Feraca and I will be discussing Islam, immigration, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Other guest TBA. You can listen to the programme live via the web. You can also call in and participate. From outside the US, e-mail HereOnEarth@wpr.org. Include your phone number: they'll call you back, or call them at +1 608 263 1890. From inside the USA call 1-800-642-1234.

Old and New Culture

2006-05-23T22:53:00.000+02:00

You can't make this stuff up. Well, actually you can. Before it became a reality, I recall reading about Chessboxing in the Franco/Bosnian comics created by the futurist and social comentator Enki Bilal. Now it is a reality. See segment 5 or download the show.

Segment 1 - France & Germany Plan Own Google
..and its called Quearo. This is give Europe and European language a higher percentage ranking, but also, as Frank Browning reports from Paris, to change the way you look at that information.
Rather bizarrely, Quaero is not yet online. Enjoy this wiki instead.

Segment 2 - Sweden Returns Totem Pole
Sweden is returning a stolen totem pole it stole a century ago from the Haisla First Nation tribe from British Columbia. Radio Swedens Dave Russell reports.
The official Canadian government's take on the pole's return.
Also, the site of the Haisla First Nation itself.

Segment 3 - Dutch Nautical School Teaches Real Sailing
The Enkuizen Nautical School in North Holland is the one and only place in Europe where you can learn to sail the old way. Our Michel Walraven learned all about it from school director Henk Wever.

Segment 4 - Bucharest Gone to the Dogs
Romanias capital is thought to be home to around 300,000 strays. At the beginning of 2006, stray dogs were again omnipresent on the streets of the Romanian capital. Until someone got bitten, really badly. Iulian Muresan has more.

Segment 5 - Chessboxing!
The only sport where taking a rook leads to a right hook. Kyle James reports from Berlin.
It's for real and you can view video featuring it, right here.

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3.

Integration Frustration

2006-05-16T21:42:00.000+02:00

Oh boy. They may even deport her!

Acrimony, lies and opportunism surrounding Ayaan Hirsi Ali's exit from the Dutch parliament and, very likely, the country. See the piece entitled "The Rise and Fall of Ayaan Hirsi Ali".

Segment 1 - Holland’s Integration Exam
Jonathan Groubert looks at something that’s attracted a lot of attention worldwide: the Dutch integration exam. The integration exam is a test that most non-westerners planning to move to Holland must take before coming to live here.
Learn all about it, in English, at the web site of the Dutch Immigiration and Naturalization Service (IND)
Segment 2 - The Rise and Fall of Ayaan Hirsi Ali
A former refugee from Somalia, Ayaan Hirsi Ali made a name for herself with her outspoken criticism of Islam, even becoming an MP in the Dutch parliament. Now it turns out her entire life story is a lie. Jonathan Groubert investigates.
Click here for a detailed Radio Netherlands article on Ayaan Hirsi (what was her last name again)

Segment 3 - A Dutch Exploration of Female Muslim Sexuality
Fiona Campbell interviews Dutch journalist and documentary maker Ingeborg Beugel who has made a six part documentary on the sex lives of young Dutch Muslims.
Fiona wrote an article on the subject with links to Ingeborg Beugel's programs. They are, of course, in Dutch.

Segment 4 - Retraining Prostitutes to Be Nurses
The German Evangelical Church wants to help women who want to get out of prostitution, to turn some of their talents to Germany’s fast-growing population of old people. John Laurenson has more in Dortmund…

Click here to download the program in mp3 format....

The Price of Oil Is Rather High!

2006-05-09T12:29:00.000+02:00

Just this morning I paid 1 Euro and 47 Cents for a liter of gasoline. That's 5 Dollars and 97 Cents a gallon for you American folks. Seems like a lot of money, right? Well get used to it because it's unlikely to get better any time soon. Why? That's what this week's EuroQuest is all about.

Segment 1 - Yet Another Environmental Doomsayer
A discussion about the negative impact of climate change with Keimpe Wieringa, head of the Department of Air Quality and European Sustainability at Holland's National Institute of Public Heath.
Laura Durnford wrote a story with links to the report here...

Segment 2 - Turkey Wants Nukes
Turkey’s Black Sea coast was one of the areas hardest hit by fallout from the Chernobyl disaster. And yet, it is also the site chosen for a potential new Turkish nuclear reactor. Dorian Jones has more...
There are a wealth of stories about Turkey's new reactors. So here's one agency that is for
and one that is against.

Segment 3 - Swedish Rock Energy
For years the Swedes have exploited the natural heat found in the bedrock to heat their houses. And now producers of this technology say they’re ready to take on the rest of Europe. Lars Bevanger reports from the town of Arvika, in the south of Sweden.

Segment 4 - Little German Town of Energy Rebels
Germany doesn’t really have a reputation as a sun drenched land, but that hasn’t stopped one Black Forest village from making the most of it, energy wise. In fact, as John Laurenson reports, the people of Schonau might even be called energy rebels.
Here is a link from the city itself on how they make energy. However is all in German.

Click here for a high quality download of this program in mp3 format

Fat and Cigarettes!

2006-05-03T10:20:00.000+02:00

At left, Regina Mac Nack feeding the (newly) poor at the Amsterdam Food Bank.

We're starving! We're obese! We're killing ourselves with ciggies. We're overlegislating! We're not taking the issue seriously! Well, whatever your perception, there's plenty to debate about the relative value or danger of what goes, or doesn't go, into our mouths.

Segment 1 - Scotland’s Child Obesity Epidemic
A recent study found that 1 third of twelve year olds in Scotland are overweight. More than 1 in 5 are clinically obese. Radio Prague’s Ian Willoughby reports from Glasgow.
Worrying Health Statistics from the Scottish Government

Segment 2 - Dutch Lunch Police Tackle Child Obesity
At the Valkenhorst Primary School in the Dutch city of Assen, the staff will open your lunchbox to see if you or parents managed to sneak in anything they consider to be unhealthy. Nikki Brown went on a stakeout with the lunch police.

Segment 3 - Amsterdam Food Bank Combats Poverty
Several years ago Regina Mac-Nack started a charity organisation called the food bank Amsterdam Zuid-Oost. Her job is to give food away to families that are not able to buy a meal every day of the week. She told our Bertine Krol about her job.
Pictures and an article from Bertine Krol on the Food Bank

Segment 4 - Czech and Spanish Public Discuss Anti Smoking Laws
Prague and Spain have banned smoking in public spaces. Radio Prague’s Michele Dobrovoni asked some Prague straphangers what they thought of the new rule. Christophe Schmidt reports from Barcelona.
Want to know all about EU policy regarding tobacco? Why not check out the Health and Consumer Protection Directorate General...

Download this week's program as a high quality mp3

EuroQuest Rundown Late today but....

2006-05-02T17:37:00.000+02:00

If you're really jonseing for a EuroDose of EuroGroubert, you can catch me on the BBC World Service program "The World Today" tonight at 20:00 CET or 18:00 GMT. The topic: will traditional media such as Newspaper, TV and, um, Radio succumb, whither and die in the face of new media? Tune in and let me know what you thought of the show!

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

2006-04-25T20:27:00.000+02:00

A right a possible picture of German and British soldiers not shooting at each other during World War 1.

Segment 1 - Retelling the Christmas Truce
A retelling of that remarkable story of spontaneous peacemaking – the Christmas Soccer Match that took place between British and German troops in the trenches of World War 1 France....or was it Belgium?
There are so many retellings of this story that, rather than link to anything specific, I'm simply place a link to Google with the keywords "Christmas Truce"

Segment 2 - Turkey the Peacemaker
From Istanbul Dorian Jones examines whether Turkey can succeed being a bridge between the Christian and Islamic worlds, or will it too fall victim to those divisions.

Segment 3 - Imams and Rabbis Meet in Seville Peace Conference
The Congress of Imams and Rabbis for Peace is about helping leaders from the Muslim and Jewish faiths to challenge the fanatics who are misusing religion.
Danny Wood went along to Seville to see how these Rabbis and Imams got along together…
The European Jewish Congress reported on it. Here's the article....

Segment 4 - Alsace Border Region Makes Peace with Itself
One region where French-German relations have always been strong is in Alsace. What do people there think about the war today? Anke Hagedorn talked to both French and Germans; her report is presented by Michael Lorne.
Click here for the Alsace region's official cross-border policy

Click here for a high quality download of this week's program!

Something Stylish on This Week's EuroQuest

2006-04-18T13:53:00.000+02:00

Dutch Minister of Justice Piet Hein Donner as "The Don" rapping his anti-marijuana message. Amazingly, the mayor of Maastricht did the same thing, only he pleaded for an even more open drugs policy.

Segment 1 - Chic in a Day- in Milan
It seems that many 21st century signorine are losing their flair for elegance, replacing sleek and chic with brash and trash. That’s why four Milanese women have decided to give courses in chic. Dany Mitzman has more...
They don't have a site so here's a link to what you get when you type in Milan Fashion. Go on. You know you want to.

Segment 2 - Atomium Reopened
The atomium, a giant metal molecule, was built for the World’s Fair back in 1958, but it very quickly became the symbol of Belgium. It has just been refurbished and reopened. Remco de Jong went for a visit.
The groovy Atomium site.

Segment 3 - Kurdish Singer Conquers Turkey
Kurdish culture in Turkey has more or less always been suppressed. Kurdish singer Aynur Dogan is among the first of those starting to break down barriers. Dorian Jones has more from Istanbul.
She has her own sound rich site.

Segment 4 - Dutch Politico Hip Hop Showdown
Straight laced and conservative Dutch minister of Justice Piet Hein Donner duels Dutch drug policy with Maastricht mayor Gert Leers in the form of competing hip hop songs. Hans Andringa explains…
Want to hear "De Don"? Click here...
Maastricht Mayor Leers' tune was harder to track down. Here's an article about the whole thing.

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

As always, you can leave comments below!

Have a Gay Easter!!!

2006-04-11T14:07:00.004+02:00

Chocolate is good for you (see Segment 4) ! So enjoy this EuroQuest Easter Special with an interesting look at tolerance and the church including Turkey's seeming inability to be Christian-friendly and the church's (two churches in fact) seeming inability to be gay-friendly.

Segment 1 - Turkey Fails to Open Christian Seminary
The European Union is expressing growing concerns over the treatment of Turkey’s Christian minority. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.

Segment 2 - Norwegian Church Split on Homosexuality
Norway has long been at the forefront of equal rights for same couples. Now the Norwegian Lutheran state church is struggling to catch up after having been split on the issue of homosexuality for decades. Lars Bevanger reports from Oslo.
The Norwegian Church is currently featuring a debate about homosexuality on its home page in English.

Segment 3 - Anglican Spokesman Discusses Possible Schism over Gays
Jonathan interviews Canon James Rosenthal, communications director of the Anglican Communion, on the possibility of the homosexuality issue splitting the church into factions.
The Anglican Communion's statement on, among other things, homosexuality.
Segment 4 - Chocolate…Is Good for You
Scientific research shows that, not only does chocolate make us feel better, it can make you healthier. Sabina Casagrande speaks with German choco scientists.
No seriously, it really is...

And a big shout out if you're doing Passover. May your brisket be tender and your gefilte fish have much yuch.

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

As always, feel free to leave comments below. By the way, there's an important update on podcasting coming this week. Stay tuned.

EuroQuest on Washington Post Radio

2006-04-05T18:12:00.000+02:00

Washington Post Radio is a new commercial venture by the quality American broadsheet. WPR is also a new Radio Netherlands partner station taking a number of Radio Netherlands programs including EuroQuest. Working with a commercial broadcaster is bit of departure for us here at Radio Netherlands. Our charter does not allow us to earn money in any way, which is why we give our programming to partner stations free of charge; all we ask is appropriate accreditation. They're also doing live streaming so check it out and tell us what you think. I know I'm curious.

The schedule is Saturday's from 6-7 AM EST and 10:30 PM to Midnight. All times are EST which is -4 GMT.

All of this begs the question: should public radio mix with private? Share your thoughts below...
-Leave your comments on this new development below-

April's Fools!

2006-04-04T12:48:00.000+02:00

Irakli Shonia looking at his father Tahles on the TV

At the behest of Moscow in the early 70’s, a scientific team in Georgia was established to investigate UFO’s and other paranormal phenomena. Led by the late physicist, Tahles Shonia, the team gathered material and studied data at Tbilisi’s Research Institute for Cybernetics. Unfortunately most of their research was destroyed during the country’s civil war, but one man is continuing the work – Tahles Shonia’s son Irakli. Our correspondent in Georgia, Guy Degen, speaks with Irakli Shonia who is determined to pick up where his father left off - unofficially and unsupported.

Here's the rest of your April's Fools lineup.

Segment 1 - Nigerian Fraudsters Rolled Up in Amsterdam
You might think that not many people would fall for email scams, but Frank Engelsman, of Internet investigators Ultrascan, estimates they rake in 1.5 billions euros a year. Michel Walraven asked him how they operate.
Here is a site devoted to routing the "Nigerian Scam" with education.

Segment 2- Bulgaria’s Organized Crime
The European Union is demanding the Bulgarian government arrest some of the country’s top organized crime bosses. If they don’t, they may not get in the EU any time soon. Deutsche Welle’s Malcolm Brabant has more.

Segment 3 - Georgian UFO Expert
Guy Degen meets Georgia’s unofficial investigator into UFO’s, extra-terrestrials and the para-normal.
A question: is Georgia part of Europe? Should Georgian stories be covered by EuroQuest? Let us know. Leave your comment below or email us at: euroquest@rnw.nl

Segment 4 - Vivian Westwood’s 65th Birthday
The Victoria & Albert Museum in London has put together the largest Westwood exhibition ever, which is on a world tour. It’s currently showing at the NRW-Forum in Düsseldorf, Germany and Sabina Casagrande had a look around.
The exhibition has its own microsite. Click here...

Click here to download the program as a high quality mp3

This Week: Under the Knife

2006-03-28T20:22:00.000+02:00

Tarantino produced this little bloodbath set in Slovakia. The Slovaks aren't crazy about the whole idea.

Europeans going abroad for health care, the sanity of the extreme makeover questioned and gruesome horror, EuroQuest goes under the knife.

Segment 1 - Health Care Overseas
Europeans from England, Germany, and Holland are more and more going abroad for cheap, quality healthcare. Jean Parker and Naomi Fowler take up the story of the British example, starting with Avril Dollery…

Segment 2 - Extreme Makeover? Extreme Psychosis!
Thijs Westerbeek speaks with Dr. A Campo, who has discovered that those who ask for an extreme change of appearance often have an underlying and serious psychiatric problem.
Click here for Thijs's article on why plastic surgery must be monitored.

Segment 3 - Aging with Attitude in Spain
Danny Wood discovered that people in Madrid you might think of as elderly, don’t see their advancing years as any barrier to doing, well, just about anything...

Segment 4 - Slovaks Unhappy about American Horror Film
The gory horror film Hostel is set in Slovakia. The Slovaks are none too pleased about the way their country is being represented, as Rob Cameron discovered at the film’s continental premiere in the Czech capital, Prague.
Link to the film's site is here.
I wanted to link to the Slovakian Ministry of Culture but the site is still under construction.

Click here to download the program in high quality mp3

Human Trafficking on Here on Earth

2006-03-24T15:56:00.000+01:00

I will be the featured guest on Wisconsin Public Radio's global call-in show "Here On Earth" on Sunday, 26 March at 2100 PM in Europe, 1900 PM UTC or 1400 PM CST in the US.Jean and Jonathan will be discussing human trafficking, one of the great problems of our day with nearly one million people per year moved across borders against their will.

Guests also include Marielle Sander-Lindstrom of the UN's International Organisation for Migration in Turkey as well as Helga Conrad, the OSCE's Special Representative on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings.

You can listen to the programme live via the web. You can also call in and participate. From outside the US, e-mail HereOnEarth@wpr.org. Include your phone number: they'll call you back, or call them at +1 608 263 1890. From inside the USA call 1-800-642-1234.

Enter the Modern Gastarbeiter

2006-03-22T11:27:00.000+01:00

Wikipedia defines Gastarbeiter as “A German word that literally means "Guest Worker", this term refers to people who have moved to Germany for jobs. It has a somewhat pejorative undertone.”

A little history.

Postwar Europe is booming. The north of Europe finds it has so much work for unskilled labor, they can’t fill the posts. So they looked to Europe’s far south for help. And help came: Spaniards, Portuguese, Greeks, and Italians. But the greatest number by far came from Turkey. In the 50s, 60s and 70s, more than 2 million Turks came on temporary work contracts to countries such as Germany and the Netherlands.

The idea was they were supposed to home.

But they stayed, married or brought over their wives and started families.
And this is one of the major contributing factors to what we in Europe now call the multicultural society.
But we also see the gastarbeiter phenomenon as a thing of the past.
When, of course, it is not…

The numbers haven’t come out yet, but it seems clear that since the European Union expanded from 15 to 25 nations in 2004, thousands of Eastern Europeans have come to the west seeking work.

That’s why today’s EuroQuest is called Modern Gastarbeiter.

Segment 1 - Eastern Europeans Save N. Irish Fishing
The coming of Eastern European labor seems to have saved County Downs fishing industry. Laura Haydon reports.

Segment 2 - NI’s Polish Welfare Association
Poles are Catholic and this has put them on the receiving end of sectarian violence. That’s why 33-year old Robert Kordula runs the Polish Welfare Association from his living room as Radio Polonia reports.

Segment 3 - France Tightens Immigration Laws
The Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy says France will welcome immigrants with new talent and new skills. But there is a downside: unskilled illegal immigrants currently in France may find themselves expelled. Alasdair Sandford has more.

Segment 4 - Berlin’s German Only School
DW Radios Ben Fajzullin on Germanys controversial test just for Muslims who are applying for German citizenship. And the Berlin high school that has made German mandatory in the schoolyard.

Click here to download this week's program in high quality mp3

Well Be Late This Week

2006-03-20T13:37:00.000+01:00

We'll be late posting this week's EuroQuest rundown on Wednesday instead of Tuesday. In the meantime here's a link to another excellent program: Amsterdam Forum. This week they'll be looking at Bosnia's case against the state of Serbia implicating it in genocide.
Check it out by clicking here.

Will Turkey Ever Have Free Speech?

2006-03-15T10:03:00.000+01:00

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has continued Turkey's pursuit of EU membership. But, in this commentary by our Turkey correspondent Dorian Jones, will the country every really warm to one of the most basic rights available to every EU citizen?

In a courtroom 5 of Turkey’s leading writers, columnists and editors faced up to 8 years in jail for articles they wrote. The controversy over freedom in expression in Turkey has returned with a vengeance.

Standing in the packed court among journalists, the defendant’s supporters and yes supporters of the prosecution, I had a rather depressing feeling of déjà vu. Over the last 12 years of reporting in Turkey I have lost count of the number of trials I have attended of people being prosecuted for what they wrote or said, whether it was writers, politicians, singers, journalists or political activists.

And this case is little different. One of the defendants, Professor Haluk Sahin, is well known to Turkey, presenting a weekly current affairs program as well as teaching media studies at Istanbul prestigious Bilgi University. For him, he says, it’s an occupational hazard, “It’s a part of being a writer in Turkey; writers have always been prosecuted or put in jail. I guess there is something in our culture that attaches more importance to words than deeds.”

In fact the court house which is locate close to many of the country’s leading newspapers and TV channels on the same day was hearing 12 other freedom of expression cases.

But such cases are meant to be a thing of the past. The European Union last year finally after decades of delay, in part due to human rights concerns finally gave the green light for the start of membership talks. Much praise has been bestowed by European leaders on the present government for the sweeping reforms introduced at break neck speed to meet EU standards.

But ironically these latest prosecutions were made under legislation introduced by the Turkish government last year to meet EU demands. Nearly all the latest cases including the world famous writer Orhan Pamuk fall under 301 of the penal code, which criminalizes statements, which undermine “Turkishness”

Critics of the law argue its vagueness makes it extremely difficult to determine what is illegal. Much of Turkish law dealing with freedom of expression over past decides has been similarly vague something critics argue is deliberate. It’s a tradition, which goes back centuries; not knowing where the legal line is drawn makes people err on the side of caution, self-censorship.

The government steadfastly refuses to amend the law arguing the fault lies with the judges and prosecutors who they say are misusing it. But it is the government which directly appoints prosecutors and judges, something the EU recently criticized calling for greater autonomy in the judicial system.

But for now the EU seems to be prepared to give the government the benefit of the doubt. Few of the cases result in prosecution and those that do are being appealed, and so far all have been overturned. But critics argue the mere threat of prosecution and ordeal of going to court is enough of a threat to deter people from fully expressing what they think.

The Best of the Beasts

2006-03-14T14:47:00.000+01:00

One of our "Best of...." Programs this week. In this case, we talk to the animals.

Segment 1 Animal Rights (or lack thereof) in France
Animal rights campaigners make little headway against lovers of foie gras and frogs’ legs in France. Alasdair Sandford reports from Paris on France’s uneasy relationship with animal rights.

3:03 Segment 2 - The Prague Christmas Carp Massacre
Pragues Christmas atmosphere clashes with one Czech tradition. It involves blood, gore and violence and the streets…and hundreds of giant Carp. Peter Smith reports.
Want to learn more about Christmas Carp? Click here to go to my colleagues at the excellent Radio Prague.

4:12 Segment 3 - HOPE: Retirement Home for Test Animals
Safari park, Ganzendorf, in Lower Austria, has developed a place called HOPE – which stands for ‘Home of Primates Europe’. It is the first retirement home for test animals in the world. Sarah Johnson went to see and hear for herself.

3:48 Segment 4 - Luxury Dog Kennels
People will go to unreasonable lengths to pamper their pooches. So what to do when it’s time to take that well earned break? You could send your canine surrogate child on a holiday of its own. Penny Young went along to see for herself.
Now for cats too. Click here...

4:30 Segment 5 - Gay Animals in Amsterdam Zoo
One of the arguments that keeps popping up is that homosexuality is unnatural.
After all, it doesn’t occur in the animal kingdom, does it? Wrong, it does.
Director Maarten Frankenhuis showed our Bertina Krol around Amsterdam Zoo's gay community.
Yes, even Wikipedia has a wiki on the subject.

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

National Identity Revisited

2006-03-07T16:16:00.000+01:00

****Update: Next week Turkey correspondent Dorian Jones reflects on the state of freedom of speech in modern Turkey. Stay tuned.****

The Turkish government dropped its case against Turkish author and inveterate Istanbulite, Orhan Pamuk, for " insulting Turkish identity". He dared to mention that Turkey should consider its culpability in the death of a million Turkish Armenians during the First World War. A perfect example of this week's EuroQuest looking at Identity.

Segment 1 - Freedom of Speech Under the Spotlight in Turkey
Dorian Jones reports on the 5 journalists currently facing charges of "insulting Turkishness". The case has raised concerns about freedom of expression in Turkey. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.
Reporters without Borders Annual Report on Turkey.

Segment 2 - Orhan Pamuk: Breaking Turkish Taboos
Orhan Pamuk broke a Turkish taboo when he spoke of Turkish guilt regarding the genocide of a million Armenians during World War 1. Frank Browning has more from Istanbul.
An Orhan Pamuk fan site. It is totally unofficial.

Segment 3 - Catalonia’s Independence Bid
Many Catalans will proudly tell you that they’re different from people in the rest of Spain. But does this make a case for independence? Danny Wood investigates….
Website of the Catalan Local Government in both English and Catalan and, hey, Spanish too.

Segment 4 - Italian Pasta-making Under Threat?
La Vecchia Scuola Bolognese is the only school in Italy specializing exclusively in the art of pasta-making. It has joined forces with a local politician to save their tradition... Dany Mitzman has the story.
Receipes? Here they are, but only in Italian, I'm afraid.

Click here for a quality download of this week's program.

Family Mystery, Family Myths

2006-03-03T17:12:00.001+01:00

What happens when everything you’ve been told about your family’s history turns out to be false? I recently made a documentary about it. I went from the US to Holland, England and Poland searching for the truth behind my family’s emigration. It is entitled: Family Mystery, Family Myth. You can click here to read the article and listen to the program in both Real and Windows Media formats.

Trafficked!

2006-02-28T11:48:00.000+01:00

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 Ban or Not to Ban...

2006-02-22T16:07:00.000+01:00

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!!!

2006-02-21T12:49:00.000+01:00

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?

2006-02-14T11:23:00.001+01:00

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.

Download this week's program in mp3 format.

A Lesson in Restraint

2006-02-10T10:56:00.000+01:00

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

2006-02-07T13:06:00.001+01:00

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

2006-02-01T15:16:00.000+01:00

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.

Digging a Little Deeper

2006-01-30T14:56:00.000+01:00

I went to a meeting of European Broadcasters in Prague last week, hosted by the good folks at Radio Prague. I always look forward to going to Prague and always look forward to leaving. I go for the visual feast as this city is a magnificent blend of Habsburg and Jugenstil delights. I leave, gratefully, as Prague continues to have the lowest standard of customer service of anywhere I’ve ever been, and I travel all over Europe.

Example - checking into my hotel, I had the following conversation, if you can it that, with the receptionist known only as “Miss Katka”:

Me: Hi, have other members of my party arrived?
Miss K: Yes, Mr. W. is in Room 205.
Me: But Mr. W lives in Prague. So who checked into Room 205?
Miss K: Yes, Mr. W.
Me: No. Mr. W. only made the reservation. He lives here.
Miss K: Yes, in Room 205.

Katkaesque?

The weather was frigid and the normally taciturn Pragueites were as antisocial as ever. I even managed to have a pretty unpleasant exchange in the airport with a lady bartender who silently scowled at my pretentious request for a double macchiato (a double espresso with a drop of milk foam on top, you really should try it). She glowered as I quickly gulped it down. I was glad to go.

All week I walked around all too glad to badmouth the Czechs. “The Slovaks were right to want to get away from them” I would say to anyone who would listen. And then something happened.

Yesterday, my 4 year old son and I went to a screening in Amsterdam of some cartoons. The best of them was a character called Krtek, or “Little Mole”. These are innocent, delicate, magnificently colored and drawn little vignettes made in the early 1970s. Armed with an unhealthy sense of curiosity, Krtek was constantly digging his way into trouble. Somehow, he would keep his wits and get out of it again. It must have been the same for Czechs in the 1970s where curiosity could get you into deep trouble and only a fast mouth could get you out of it. Life must have been Krtekesque.

My son cried when the cartoons ended. And every time the closing credits said “Made in Prague,” I felt a stab of guilt.

Click here to find out more about ‘Krtek’ the little mole!

The Fear Factor in EuroQuest

2006-01-24T22:14:00.000+01:00

At left, Fiona Stewart and her daughter.

Segment 1 - London Underground Fear
Fiona Stewart, a London resident who travels to work each day on the London underground via Kings Cross, describes a scary situation that happened two years prior to the London
This is an excerpt from Michele Ernsting's excellent documentary "Testing the Alarms". Click here to go to the program's web page and listen to the entire program.

Segment 2 - The Fear Factor
Today’s media saturates the airwaves with round the clock news reporting. But when does coverage become too much? And what effect does that have on society? Richard Walker takes up the story in London.

Segment 3 - NI Gangs
N.Irish paramilitary groups are turning into mafia type organizations. Laura Haydon interviews teenage NI protestants about the attractions of joining these groups now that peace has come.

Segment 4 - Crime and (Lack of) Punishment in Bulgaria
Romania and Bulgaria are set to join the European Union in 2007. And while most things look good on paper, the reality is somewhat different. Margreet Strijbos has more.
Here's a longer article on the subject by Radio Netherlands' Richard Walker. Click here...

Here's the high quality download of this week's show.

Want podcasts? The XML is on the right...

The State of International Broadcasting

2006-01-22T11:48:00.000+01:00

The Prague Coat of Arms

I'm currently in Prague at a conference for international broacasters involved in the Radio E project. In English, this means a program called "Network Europe". Listeners to EuroQuest will probably have heard me mention that this piece or that came from Network Europe. This is a magazine program with contributions from Radio Netherlands (us), RFI, DW Radio, Radio Sweden, Radio Romania International, Radio Slovakia and, of course, Radio Prague. Radio Sweden, DW and RFI acutally produce and directly broadcast it, so I guess this makes us a junior partner in the project.

Every 6 months we get together to discuss the current state of our particular flavor of broadcasting: international public radio. Later in the week, safely ensconced in the warm safety of my office in Hilversum, I shall update you with the state of things now and the state of things to come here on the continent, radiophonically speaking.

Diesel Dos and Donts in this week's EQ

2006-01-17T10:32:00.000+01:00

Rapeseed, or Canola Oil as diesel fuel. As far as my admittedly cursory web search can determine, no one, not even the oil industry, seems to think this is a bad idea. There is a downside, as you can hear in segment 3, it makes your car smell like French fry fat. The whole show is filled with upsides and downsides, ins and outs, bottoms and tops, fricks and fracks (you get the point) of looking for alternative ways to fuel our wonderfully wasteful western lifestyle. As far as I can determine, it looks like we'll be cozying up to Gazprom for some time to come.

(Picture nicked from Greenpeace as part of a long article on bio-diesel)

Segment 1 - Stockholm's Congestion Charge Trial
In order to reduce traffic and pollution, the Swedish capital Stockholm is enacting a highly controversial 6-month congestion charge trial. Bill Schiller spoke to the project leaders of Stockholm's congestion charge trial.
Subsequent to this interview, the new toll has been introduced and seems to be working. Check out this article from Radio Sweden entitled "New road toll slashes traffic".

Segment 2 - The Sea Highway
How do you get a heavy goods vehicle from the south of France to the south of Italy on less than a liter of diesel? Answer: put it on a boat. John Laurenson reports on Europe's new sea highway...

Segment 3 - Switching to Rapeseed Oil: A Cheap and Clean Solution?
Rapeseed oil can be used as fuel for cars and trucks. It is biodegradable, non-toxic and has fewer emissions when burned. Michel Walraven went to one of the Dutch rape oil mills in the north of the Netherlands where he was shown how it works.
An interesting article on Dutch biofuel policy. This article is in English.

Segment 4 - Human Powered Energy
Professor AJ Jansen of the faculty for industrial design at Delft Technical University in the Netherlands demonstrated Human Powered Energy devices to Thijs Westerbeek.
You want to know more? This is a Link to the Technical University of Delft's "Human Powered Energy Systems" site.

You can download this program in high quality mp3 format here.

Coming to terms with a suicide bomber

2006-01-13T11:06:00.000+01:00

"I just miss her so much" - six words that speak a thousand.

The man who spoke them was this man on the left, John Falding. His girlfriend, Anat Rosenberg, was killed when one of the 7th July suicide bombers blew himself up on the number 30 bus in London. John was speaking to her on the phone when the bomb went off. Since then, he says, time has just collapsed.

I interviewed John during a trip to London to make a report for the 6-month anniversary of the bombings.

His face would light up when he talked about fond memories that he had of Anat - of her love for life, her loyalty or about the fact that she was always late for everything because she was trying to cram so much into her day. But then an incredible sadness would wash over his face when he returned to the reality that Anat will never be late for anything again.

I wanted to know how John was coming to terms with her death. I mean, how do you come to terms with the fact that your loved one walks out of the door one morning, and never returns - because someone has decided to blow himself up and others along with him, misguidedly, in the name of religion, Islam or otherwise?

Would you be angry? Would you want revenge? Not once did John get angry or use the word ‘hate’ when talking about his feelings towards the person who killed Anat. The man I interviewed was determined not to take the same path of hate and violence that the suicide bombers trod. After all, he says, it was hate that killed Anat.

John has thought a lot about what made the no.30 bus bomber, Hasib Hussain, do what he did but has come no closer to understanding. He says it's like trying to comprehend the extent of the universe, to try and understand a mind like that.

But he says he has learnt one thing: time does not heal. You just learn to come to terms with the pain and the sense of emptiness and loss.

You can listen to more of the interview I made with John by clicking here

There’s been a lot of soul searching in the UK since the 7th July, as to what made apparently integrated, happy, western-thinking men become suicide bombers - and how it can be prevented from happening again.

And as you’ll hear in the second part of John’s interview, there’s also concern that anti-terror measures proposed by the UK government, could have the opposite of their desired affect.

Keeping the Demons at Bay

2006-01-10T10:47:00.000+01:00

The lady on the left here is Anat Rosenberg. She was an Israeli woman who lived and worked in London for a charity agency. She was too afraid to move back to Israel for fear of terrorist violence. She was killed in the London bombings last July. In this week's EuroQuest, entitled "Keeping the Demons at Bay" we try to come to terms with a history of violence or misdeed.

Segment 1 - 7 Months On, Man Mourns Suicide Bombing Victim
Anat Rosenberg and 51 other people were killed in the July 7th suicide bombings in London. Her boyfriend John Falding says he is still trying to come to terms with what happened...
Coming soon: extra audio of Sarah Johnson's compelling interview with John Falding.

Segment 2 - Bosnia and Croatia Connected Again by Dutch Ferry
Hans Andringa reports on how the former Yugolsav republics are getting on 10 years since the end of the wars in the Balkans. He gives the example of the resumption of ferry service between pushover on the Croatian side of the Danube and Bacs on the Serbian side.

Segment 3 - Rumanian Church in Bed with Communists?
The Rumanian Orthodox church is something of a survivor in a sense. However, 16 years since Rumania's 1989 anti-communist revolution, people are beginning to wonder if that survival is no coincidence. IulianMuresan has more.
Wikipedia has a concise history of the Rumanian Church including information about state control during the Ceaucescu period.

Segment 4 - Moldova in Limbo
Western Moldova has its sights set on a future however the breakaway republic of Transdniestr has its feet firmly planted in its Soviet past, and its present is assured by Russian troops. Darrell Harvey brings us this report from Moldova.
The CIA World Factbook entry on Moldova.
Click here to download this week's show as a high quality mp3

EuroQuiz!

2006-01-06T16:40:00.000+01:00

Actually, this isn't an annoucement for a new EuroQuest EuroQuiz as much as a callout for ideas for a new quiz. What should it be? A geography quiz? History? Something a little racier?
Why not get the old gray matter going and post a few ideas here at the EuroBlog. I look forward to reading what you come up with.

A Parable for Our Times

2006-01-04T10:59:00.000+01:00

"....by then all of Turkey knew Yucel as the woman who had swept aside her son's choice of a bride with the words: 'I'll tell you when you're in love'." writes the Washington Post in an addendum to the January 3rd posting on a Turkish reality series that got so out of hand one contestant committed suicide. More insights into what happened in this excellent article.

New Year? New Morality!

2006-01-03T12:27:00.000+01:00

Fully recovered? We're getting back up to full speed here in Hilversum. That's why we thought we'd cheer you all up with a program that takes a look at some of Europe's more recent moral pitfalls.

Segment 1 - De Einder: Support for Suicide
De Einder is a Dutch foundation that provides moral support for people contemplating suicide. Sarah Johnson went to investigate, starting at a symposium to celebrate the organization’s 10 year anniversary.
Interested in learning more or acutally speaking to someone there? You can go to their web page. It's all in Dutch so I've linked to the contact information page.
Taking a critical distance from the activities of de Einder, here is discussion of the topic from the point of view of several philosophers in an article from the New York Times's New York Review of Books.

Segment 2 - The dark side of Turkish reality TV
Reality shows are a phenomenon. But when the Turkish reality TV star, Ata Turk, was found dead in a hotel room of a suspected drug overdose, it raised serious questions about whether such programs really are just harmless entertainment. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.

Segment 3 - How real is reality TV?
It seems TV producers will go to any lengths to draw viewers here in Holland. Take a new program called 'Spuiten en Slikken' or 'Spurting and Swallowing.' But how far should these reality programs be able to go? To answer that question we spoke to Jan Teurings, a lecturer in media studies at the University of Amsterdam.

Interested in learning more about "Spuiten en Slikken"? Here's the link. Again, it's all in Dutch. That's why I'm also providing the link to Endemol. Endemol is the Dutch production company responsible for the entire worldwide reality TV craze by giving the world the gift that keeps on giving: Big Brother. Would you rather have knitting needles pushed through you eyes than watch a reality TV program? Click here...

Segment 4 - Taking the bull by the horns in Spain
To many Spaniards, bullfighting is not barbaric. It’s simply a contest between man and nature: an expression of tradition and culture. Did you know there’s even a bullfighting school down in Madrid? Neither did we, until Danny Wood told us about it.

Please click here to download the full program in high quality mp3 format

As always, you can leave comments below. Hope to hear from you. I suspect we'll hear from the antibullfighting crowd.

Happy New Year!!!!!

2005-12-31T11:43:00.000+01:00

Hi everyone. Sorry it's been a slow week for posts. The holidays have reduced personnel and time to a minimum. Next week should be more productive. In the meantime, enjoy yourself and be safe. I and everyone here at Radio Netherlands wish you a happy and healthy New Year.

Jonathan

Our Advice for 2006: Enter Whining!

2005-12-27T09:30:00.001+01:00

At left, Jose Bove, French farmer and eco warrior. Love him or hate him, he personfies this week's EuroQuest theme. Yes, this week's show is one major rant after another. From GMO food to the Nanny State to ad campaigns to make Germans more pleasant to one another (a thankless task), we advise you to enter the New Year scowling. Erm....Enjoy!

Segment 1 Mutant Maize

Jose Bove is the French cheese farmer who gained notoriety in 1999 when he and others destroyed a McDonald’s restaurant in France. Why? For him, McDonalds is a hated symbol of the industrialization of food production. Bove has also been arrested for destroying genetically modified, or GM, crops, has since become an international leader of the anti-corporate globalization movement. And he’s something of a folk hero in France where, nowhere in the world is there as much open resistance towards Genetically Modified food. And yet, and yet… Some farmers have started growing GMO corn on the quiet. This report from John Laurenson in the south of France in a segment called Mutant Maize.…

4:01 Segment 2 Where Have All The Protests Gone?

Remember the 60s? Remember the heady days of the anti-globalization protests that gave people like Jose Bove a platform? Just cast your mind back to the situation in Seattle six years ago, where riots made world headlines. The major international summits are still going on but the rioting protestors seem to more or less dissipate? So what has happened to all that emotion - that so recently mobilized tens of thousands of protestors? Where has, for example, the anti-globalization movement gone? Pieternel Gruppen investigates, speaking first with British economist and former protestor Noreena Hertz.

3:42 Segment 3 The “Nanny” State

They call Britain the Nanny State, but is that true? Maggie Ayre discusses…

4:13 Segment 4 Du Bist Deutschland

As we all know, national stereotypes abound. French are often seen as arrogant snobs, Americans as overweight bumpkins or grinning optimists. Germans, on the other hand, are often viewed as stiff, dour, and very serious. It’s a stereotype so pervasive that even many Germans believe they could use a change of attitude. An ad campaign has been running on German TV lately to get people to lighten up, stop complaining and to stop and smell the roses. And it may be working, as Kyle James reports from Berlin.

4:27 Segment 5 Norwegian Hypochondriacs

When you have a rumble in your stomach, do you conclude it must be stomach cancer? Or if your heart beats fast, you are suffering a heart attack? Then you could be a hypochondriac. It might be a much-ridiculed condition, but in Norway it is being taken very seriously indeed. There, perfectly healthy people who believe they are very ill, can be referred by their GP to what is believed to be the world’s only hypochondria clinic in the coastal city of Bergen. Lars Bevanger went along to find out how to be cured for what you haven’t got.

Click here for a high quality mp3 of this week's show.

A Bosnian Christmas Carol

2005-12-20T15:09:00.000+01:00

To the right is Svemirnka (Minka) Mijatovic, my wife's sister (actually her cousin but they don't make such petty distinctions in the Balkans). Behind her is the tiny log cabin church that is the goal of the story below. It is called A Bosnian Christmas Carol, two sections of which have been encoded into Windows Media Format for your viewing pleasure. I hope you enjoy the story below and Merry Christmas!

On January the 6th 2003 or Orthodox Christmas Eve, I took part in a few Christmas rituals with my wife and her family near the little village of Susnjari, just outside of Banja Luka, the capital of the Bosnian Serb Republic.

My wife Dragana, her father, uncles, her English-speaking cousin Minka and I made our way through Susnjari towards the mountain. It was dark, it was cold and it was starting to snow.
As we walked through the village, we stopped at every house. The brothers Mijatovic would start shouting and out would come the men. Hidden stashes of slivovitz were revealed, all drank one shot and we moved onto the next house where this would be repeated.

We did this maybe ten times before we got to the foot of the mountain. Now it was colder, the snow was falling harder and I was drunk. I asked Minka: How long will it take to get to the top? A half an hour, she slurred. And I just knew she was lying.

So we’re fighting our way up this mountain in what has become ankle deep snow. To my astonishment, more people were joining us at every new path. We must’ve been about 50 at one point. And now we’re getting hot and sweaty from the work. And people are laughing and joking and I’m starting to have fun when… of in the distance… I heard baddah baddah baddah pow!!!

“Jesus Minka”, I whispered. “What’s that? It sounds like gunfire.” “Oh it is.” she replied, “Somebody is celebrating Christmas.” “Will they have guns at the top of the mountain?” “Oh no, they’re not allowed to bring them. Well not anymore!”

An hour and half later we reached the top. I thought I heard more gunshots, but it turned out to be kids lighting firecrackers. And there were hundreds of people huddling around a tiny log cabin that could hold maybe 10 people…tops. It seemed that almost everyone had made this arduous, cold difficult journey, up the side of a mountain, in a snowstorm, in the dark, to get to a church so tiny, you simply can’t get in. When the service and auction had ended, some of us moved to the cabin next door. There was many a hearty pat on the back and the greetings of people who only get to see each other once a year, surrounded by alcohol laden halos of breath. And then, magically, my father in law started to sing.

You can click here to see the singing in wmv.

After about an hour, the singing stopped, more out of exhaustion and intoxication, I think. Everyone shook hands and we headed back down the mountain where the whole thing happened in reverse.

Click here to see Minka explain the end of the ritual in wmv.

One party would break off from the rest to head down a different path. We would all stop and sing a song with me pretending to know the words. We all had one shot of brandy, and, in a spirit of genuine brotherhood, go our own way.

When we reached the edge of the village, we were all drunk, wet, cold, hungry and…frankly…exhausted. We hurried home anticipating the gigantic Christmas meal we not only knew was awaiting us, but that we had earned. But then the brothers Mijatovic suddenly stopped in front of a white house and started discussing something in hushed tones I couldn’t understand.

They stopped talking and counted down: three, two, one. And they started singing a soft, kind of sad carol in perfect two-part harmony. And then, a chubby, middle-aged lady with badly dyed blonde hair peered out of the houses front window. She saw the men singing and squeezed her hands to her cheeks. She listened for a minute and then went away.

When she reappeared, she was plowing her way through the knee-deep snow, nearly knocking over the slivovitz bottle and little cups she had placed on a serving tray, laughing and calling to us and panting and, and…she was crying. Minka leaned over to me and whispered, “This woman is a refugee. She lost her whole family when the Croats chased the Serbs out of Krajina. Her husband and son are dead and she’s all alone.” The Mijatovic’s held out their arms and shouted to her. Ho, Ho.They hugged her and she kissed them. She poured us all a glass and we made a toast, “Zivjeli” - To life. And as the brandy burned my throat thought, I thought “Wow, now this is Christmas.”

The True Meaning of Christmas - Bosnian Style

2005-12-19T16:56:00.000+01:00

A Bosnian mountaintop cabin quite similar to the one featured in segment 1 of this week's program.
Want more explanation of the term Badnjak? Click here.

I'm back!!!!! Wow, the Egyptian Red Sea is fabulous. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to escape the winter blues. I acutally swam with a dolphin. Enough!

This week's program is the traditonal EuroQuest Christmas special including a 13 minute long featurette where I learn the true meaning of Christmas after a sojurn up the side of a Bosnian mountain. Later this week I'll encode some of the video mentioned in the piece as proof I was really there. In the meantime, the audio is up in high quality. Enjoy! And...oh yeah...Happy Hannukah.

Segment 1: A Bosnian Christmas Carol 13:35
Jonathan Groubert follows his Bosnian in laws up a mountain to take part in a Serbian Orthodox tradition, he just wanted to please his father in law. But when he got there, he discovered the true meaning of Christmas.

Segment 2: Italian Cheer (Beer) 5:27
Italians first started experimenting with beer-making in the mid-Nineties, and over the last few years, specialist craft breweries have been springing up all over Italy. Dany Mitzman caught up with the director of the Italian Union of Brewers, Lorenzo Dabove.

Segment 3: A Norwegian Christmas Treat: Sheep’s Head Soup 5:11This next piece takes us to the municipality of Voss, where nothing beats a smoked and boiled sheep’s head, served whole. Lars Bevanger, truly a brave man with a strong stomach, sampled some for EuroQuest.

Click here to download the program in high quality.

Living Apart Together Part 2

2005-12-07T19:18:00.000+01:00

I'm on vacation this week, so no time to comment. Back in the office and blogging away next week Monday. Until then, enjoy this red hair.

Segment 1: French ‘Grande Ecole’ Recruits Minorities 5:23
Five years ago France’s Institute of Political Studies decided it was time to change the resolutely white, upper class profile of its student body, and reach out to the untouchables of French society. Frank Browning filed this profile of the Institute.

Segment 2: Colonial France Rehabilitated 4:38
French colonialism still has repercussions to this day. After all, many of the young men burning cars in the French suburbs were the sons of immigrants from the former empire. So, should France be proud of its colonial past? Nick Champeaux reports.

Segment 3: Germans Have Hard Time Integrating to Holland 4:16
Mira Peeters from the University of Nijmegen wrote her doctoral thesis on the integration of German immigrants. She found that most Germans have a hard time feeling Dutch, and that the Dutch themselves aren’t really helping. Thijs Westerbeek reports.

Segment 4: End of the Red Head? 5:38
Can it really be true that, as a result of migration and ethnic mixing, there will be no redheads in 50 years time? Kathy Clugston spoke with dr. Eric Sistemans.

Click here to download this week's program in high quality!

Living Apart Together

2005-12-07T18:33:00.000+01:00

We're "Living Apart Together" in this week's EuroQuest....or alongside or in parallel or whatever. The point is...we are not actually communicating or commisserating or whatever.

Take Cyprus. That island has been divided since 1974. It seems that, for some, this division has become a state of being and end in itself, rather than a temporary blip in the island's long history. While it seems most on both sides want to see this state of affairs ended, Cyprus is proof that a status quo is hard to shake loose.

But, sometimes, an odd but outstanding event comes along that makes people think and adds to the drumbeat for change. One of those events is in this week's EuroQuest.

Listen and enjoy.

5:43 Segment 1 - The Last Yugoslavs
Jonathan Groubert tells the story of his first visit to Belgrade and an ethnically surprising tour of the biggest Orthodox church in the Balkans.

7:50 Segment 2 - Turkey’s Armenian Orphans
Dorian Jones goes with a Turkish filmmaker as she researches the history or of one of those orphans -- her grandmother.

6:34 Segment 3 - Cypriot Musical Colloboration Unites Divided City
The Mediterranean Island of Cyprus has been divided ever since the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974. It is precisely this divide that was the subject of a recent musical collaboration between Greek and Turkish Cypriot musicians. Tabitha Morgan was there.

4:09 Segment 4 - French Boarding School for Kids from the Projects
Ever since the riots, much thought has been given to what can be done about the ennui amongst the immigrant youth in the French housing projects. One solution is boarding schools for the poor. John Laurenson reports from Lyons.
Please click here to download the program.
Podcasting? We do it at iTunes, Podnova
and Yahoo.
As always, you can leave comments below.

The Last Yugoslavs

2005-12-05T15:39:00.000+01:00

To the right is a picture of St. Sava. This, I'm told, is the largest Orthodox Church in the Balkans and is the subject of a little piece I made recently called "The Last Yugoslavs". The Public Radio Exchange made it this week's "Pick of the Week" and editorial board member Marjorie van Halteren said "Straight from the heart, nicely done."
Below is the entire text, which, I believe also makes nice reading.
Click here to listen to the radio version of the piece. It's only 5'43"

In April of 1996, I went to Belgrade. The war in Bosnia had just come to an end and my wife Dragana, who is from Banja Luka, Bosnia, went to see her family there for the first time in 4 years. As you could imagine, it was an emotional reunion.

The atmosphere in Belgrade was charged. Slobodan Milosevic was still in power, the old Yugoslavia was dead and war was in the air. And there I was, a tourist in the city on the edge of an abyss. Dragana’s two cousins, Svemirka and Goca, decided that I should see something of the city. So off we went to what they claimed was the largest Orthodox Church in the Balkans. The bus was sweltering. All of Belgrade smelled like sweat and exhaust. It had once been rich, but now it was poor, desperate, slightly beaten and resigned to more beatings. The people looked busy, going to work or to cafes. But they also looked, I don’t know, somehow lost.

And there it was, Saint Sava. It’s heaving domes not really elegant, just very big. A swollen white and grey carbuncle in the city center. And it looked closed. Could we go in? Should we? Should we say that I was an American? After all, the Americans had just bombed the Serb Army in Bosnia. I didn’t think I’d be, you know, popular.

We found an open gate and walked to the little vicary next to the church. A painfully thin young man of about 25 was sitting, reading a newspaper and perspiring in his gray polyester suit with a thin, black tie, his white shirt transparent from sweat. He said his name was Slobo. Goca and Sverminka told Slobo I was a visiting American of Serb decent and that we wanted a tour of the church. Slobo said he spoke English, nodded and, unsmilingly, led us inside for a big surprise. The largest church on the Balkans was nothing but an empty shell.

It seems that they’d been trying to finish the church for the last 80 or so years but, every time they were just about to start again, war would break out and they’d have to stop. Slobo robotically led us through the building, told us the statistics: how high, how big, what kind of stone it was made from and then he led us out. As we past the vicary he turned and, strangely, dropped his formality and asked us inside for a drink.

We sat at the table of a large room and were given tiny glasses of powerful plum brandy, slivovic. Slobo looked at me and asked, do you play piano? No, sorry. I do, he said, and he walked over to the upright piano next to the table. And then he started to play.

The music was both joyous and sad. My wife and cousins started singing along with Slobo, word for word. And then he said, do you know this song from the mountains of Macedonia? And they did, and they sang, and they drank and off came Slobo’s jacket. And then he said, do you know this song old Bosnian drinking song, and they did and they drank and they stood on their chairs with their arms in the air and off came Slobo’s tie. And they kept on singing and dancing and drinking and laughing. And then Slobo stopped playing.

And he said, “Do you know, we had the best country in the world? We had freedom and money and a hard currency, but we didn’t have to work hard like you in the west. We had good lives. We had the best from the east and the west and we destroyed it.” “Do you know, I am not from Belgrade. I am from Croatia. I was here when the war started and I got stuck.” “I am from Dalmatia.” “Do you know this old Dalmatian fisherman’s song?” And he started to play…

They knew the song. And they sang and they drank until they wept. They all wept for the country they had lost. The Croat, the Serb and Bosnians all wept, for they were no longer countrymen, and yet they were, at least for tonight, still bound by the memory of what was and what could have been, and by this music. They we’re singing as if they were the last Yugoslavs on earth.

Later that night, we went to dinner. Slobo got into a fight with a gypsy band that wouldn’t play an old Yugoslav song. Then he got drunk, passed out in his soup and ruined his suit.

EuroQuest This Week: Thinking Big!

2005-11-30T15:12:00.000+01:00

To the right, a picture of a house flooded during the Dutch flood of 1953. A disaster that led to the creation of one of the great engineering marvels of the 20th century, the Delta Plan.

This week's EuroQuest theme is "Thinking Big".
Here's the rundown and you can even download the show in high quality at the bottom of this posting.

Segment 1 - Superpower Europe?
The EU can in no way compete with the US when it comes to military might. This is why Rob de Wijk has called for greater security and defense cooperation amongst European nations in a book called: "Europe the Superpower". Here he tells his ideas to Margreet Strijbos.
Click here to learn more about the Clingendael Institute.

Segment 2 - Strengthening Dutch Dikes
Around half of the Netherlands is under sea level, and as such, dike building and maintenance has always had the highest priority. Thijs Westerbeek reports on Dutch diking, starting his report on a dam that was so big it turned a saltwater sea into a freshwater lake.
Click here to learn more about the Delta Works

Segment 3 - France’s Manifesto City
Figures just published in France show the countryside is fast disappearing under concrete. But this is a tendency France’s top architects are determined to counter. And they’ve built a whole new model city to prove it. John Laurenson reports.

Segment 4 - Art Museum in Ceausescu Palace a Great Irony?
Ceaucescu’s Palace is considered to be one of the world’s most controversial monuments to megalomania. So, when the government decided to build the new Museum of Contemporary Art there, it created a small riot in local art circles. Jonathan Groubert reports from Bucharest.
Want to know more about the Palace? Check out the posting from November the 21st.

Please click here to download the full program in high quality.

Comments or violent dissent. As ever, you can leave them here below.

Letting the Past Catch Up

2005-11-28T13:45:00.000+01:00

Realized I forgot to post the high quality download for last week's EuroQuest.
The theme: Letting the Past Catch Up

Segment 1 - British Public Service announcements
Does the public really need instructions on the proper operation of a handkerchief? The British government thought so back in 1945 and produced a film on that and other so-called public service matters. The British national archive has pooled together a number of these films and has placed them online. Want to see them for yourself? Click here.

2 - The Slovak Artist and Vincent van Gogh
Thousands of people have made pilgrimages to the house in Nuenen, where Vincent van Gogh grew up. But only one of them has actually met Vincent, in a way. Helene Michaud tells the weird and wonderful tale of the two Vincents.

Segment 3 - Warsaw Palace of Culture Revisited
The Palace of Culture in Warsaw, with its monstrous size and audacious architecture, is a tourist attraction and a moneymaker. But, as Michal Kubicki explains, it was a gift from Josef Stalin, meant to glorify socialism.

Please click here to download the program in high quality:
The Podcast of EuroQuest can be downloaded at:
PodNova
And the Yahoo Podcast Beta
As always, you can leave comments
below.

Another nail in the coffin of free speech?

2005-11-25T13:42:00.000+01:00

Many stories have come out of Russia in recent years about the increase of state control of the media, the judiciary and so forth. But what about governmental control of non-governmental organisations? That’s an idea that seems completely at odds with itself, doesn’t it? But, according to the fears of many NGOs working in Russia, that’s exactly what’s going to happen there.

Russia's State Duma has given its preliminary backing to a new bill which would give the state greater control over non-governmental organizations working in the country.

Sponsors of the bill say it will prevent money laundering, ‘extremism’ and undue foreign influence - an idea that one NGO, Human Rights Watch, says is ridiculous. They reckon the bill will only mean that many NGOs will be forced to close their regional offices in Russia.

So, who’s right? State control of NGOs would certainly be another nail in the coffin of free speech and independence in Russia, but how independent are foreign-funded NGOs anyway? Does he who pays the piper pay the tune as well? (A quote that admittedly comes from President Putin himself...)

Check out the interview I did with HRW researcher, Diederik Lohman.

And if you want to find out more about it, there's a couple of good articles on Guardian Unlimited and the BBC's webpage.

Disclaimer: We accept no responsibility for the content of outside sources

Violent dissent? Why not leave a comment below?

A Man in a Dress

2005-11-23T12:54:00.000+01:00

Addendum!

You may recall my tirade about Ayaan Hirsi Ali's proposed script for "Submission 2" about the Muslim intolerance for homosexuals. At the time, I was rather annoyed that she singled out Mohammedeans for gay bashing.

Well, the Vatican has just announced that it will ban gays from the priesthood. The exact terms are those "who are actively homosexual, have deep-seated homosexual tendencies, or support the so-called 'gay culture.'" If you wish to read more about it, here's a good article from the New York Times. The text in the original Italian can be found here.

So Ayaan, will we see the Pope in any future versions of "Submission"?

Disclaimer: We accept no responsibility for the content of outside sources.

Ceaucescu's Palace is Enormous!

2005-11-21T12:52:00.000+01:00

As promised in this week's EuroQuest, a picture of the
palace.

The home of the Parliament and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Ceaucescu's Palace was built at the expense of the Romanian people. It is second only to the Pentagon in size. Strongman Nicolae Ceauşescu literally razed a quarter of the city to create the space to build it and the open square of the Centru Civic. He bled the country to fund it's construction. Here's what "The Free Dictionary" has to say:

"There was no marble to be had for tombstones, because it was all going to build the palace and the Centru Civic. By 1984, despite high crop yield and food production, food rationing was introduced on a wide scale (the government promoted it as "a means to reduce obesity" and "rational eating"). Bread, milk, butter, cooking oil, sugar, pork, beef, chicken, and in some places even potatoes were rationed in most of Romania by 1989, with rations being made smaller every year (by 1989, a person could legally buy only 10 eggs per month, half to one loaf of bread per day, depending on the place of residence, or 500 grams of any kind of meat. "

To say nothing of the tens of thousands who lost their homes. Interestingly, in a non scientific survey on the streets of Bucharest, I could find almost no one who disliked it. Romanians seem to be concious of it's attraction to foreigners and have come to embrace it.

---------------

Podcasting!!!!!!
We do it through iTunes as well as:
PodNova
And the Yahoo Podcast Beta
As always, you can leave comments below.

Ayaan? Submit!

2005-11-18T14:16:00.000+01:00

Ayaan Hirsi Ali. There is no name in Dutch politics so well-known on the world stage today. To some she’s the brave, Islam renouncing, feminist heroine who faced down the fanatics that killed Dutch filmmaker/provocateur Theo van Gogh.

Just Google her name and see the endless hits. Together they made “Submission”, the short film that got Theo killed by a Dutch-born Muslim fanatic and made her one of this year’s "Time 100 Leaders and Revolutionaries". Now she’s at it again. In the wake of the French riots, the script for “Submission II” is ready. And this time…it’s gay. Yes, now she’s tackling the Muslim eye for the queer guy…and gal, for that matter. And this is a good thing, right? After all, it is only the Muslims of this world that have a problem with gays, right?

Oh wait, will Submission III be about the Pope? What about the 18 Anglican bishops who just sent a damning letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury for his support of homosexual vicars? That church is on the verge of a schism on the matter. I suppose George Bush will be making an appearance in “Submission IV” for suggesting a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage. One can only hope that when Submission II does come, it will be somehow more even handed in its condemnation of condemnations.

As for me, I have one hope for the next film: that it will be less boring. The first one, as provocative and headline capturing as it was, would have had even more impact if you didn't nod out halfway through. Don’t take my word for it; judge for yourself at her party’s site. And if you happen to be handy at screenplays, I beg you to leave her some pointers.

As always, we take no responsibility for outside sources.

If you’d like to comment, you can do so below.

French Race Riots: A Comparison with the US

2005-11-17T14:01:00.000+01:00

"There's a really close parallel to France," said Harris, who teaches political science at the University of New Mexico. "High unemployment, low family income, inferior education and training, inadequate housing, a great deal of hostility toward the police - we found that the level of hostility in the black sections of these cities was high enough that almost any random spark would set them off."

Writes Brian Knowlton in the International Herald Tribune this week. Regular listeners to EuroQuest know that, on the subject of the integration of minorities, I often make comparisons with the United States. Why? Because integration in the US seems to succeed where we here in Europe fail. However, when it comes to the French riots, and the root frustrations that seed them, the parallels with African Americans in the so-called urban housing projects seem pretty clear.

More on this subject from EQ tomorrow. In the meantime, the IHT article is worth a read.

Comments? You can leave there here below. And...

Disclaimer: Radio Netherlands is not responsible for the content of external Web sites!

EuroQuest This Week: Power!......and Fear

2005-11-16T13:00:00.000+01:00

Jonathan Groubert was holiday last week, so......

This week's show was produced by Sarah Johnson Presented by Daniel Frankl and is all about power and fear.

At left, a day after London won the Olympic bid, the city was attacked.
*****************************************************************************
You can download the program here!
Segment 1 - London Fear Factor
Since the attacks on London, the terror threat has been a staple of the mainstream media. Richard Walker traveled to London to ask if our fears are being manipulated by those in power.

Segment 2 - Revolt of the Powerless in Turkey
The predominantly Kurdish southeast of Turkey is controlled by a system of powerful figures called Agars. And for centuries, the lives of villagers have been dominated by their ruling Agar. But as Dorian Jones reports that tradition is being seriously challenged.

Segment 3 - Taking the Fear out of Fillings
Ad de Jongh specializes in treating people who suffer from dental fear, and he’s also been training other young dentists how to deal with scared patients. Queenie Scholtes met Ad de Jongh in the Amsterdam medical center.

Segment 4 - Empowerment on wheels in London’s Tower Hamlets
The local Bengali community center Jagonari usually offers English lessons and a variety skills to help women improve their lives. But now there’s a new addition to the curriculum: a course in bicycling. Radio Netherlands Fiona Campbell stopped in to see the class at the center.
Podcasting:
We do it through iTunes as well as:
PodNova - We've jumped a couple of a thousand places here, thanks!!!!!
And the Yahoo Podcast Beta
And, as always, you can leave comments below.

EuroQuest Special Program on Minority Language Broadcasting, Part III

2005-11-12T13:27:00.000+01:00

Can immigrants do without domestic foreign language broadcasts?

I think there seems to be a growing feeling among the public and politicians in the Netherlands that people who want to live here should speak Dutch. I’ve experienced it myself. Gone are the days when it wasn’t expected. Integration Minister Rita Verdonk has made it mandatory for immigrants to learn to speak Dutch in integration courses and has even drawn up legislation which says that would-be immigrants would have to learn Dutch before they come.

I asked my Dutch teacher what she thinks about minority broadcasting. (She also gives Dutch lesson to immigrants who have to take these so-called “inburgerings” courses.) She’s divided on the issue. On the one hand she says it’s a good way of informing people about life in the Netherlands, and what’s going on in the news, etc.
But, on the other hand, she fears that it would give people even less of a reason to learn Dutch, if they could get all the information they need in their own language.

She gave as an example the creation of a Turkish language medical centre near where she lives. She thinks this might give some Turkish women even less incentive to learn Dutch, as some women she has met say their main reason for wanting to learn Dutch is so they can go to the doctor on their own. She says there are some Turkish women who can quite easily live in a so-called Turkish-language bubble here – they speak Turkish with their families and female friends, they shop at Turkish shops and market stalls. And now of course they can go to a Turkish-language medical centre. She says people need an incentive to learn Dutch and these women have little. But if they have Turkish language broadcasting, would they have even less?

One of our Swedish guests, Nidia Hagström, is the co-ordinator of Swedish Radio's broadcasts in Middle Eastern languages. She believes that domestic foreign language broadcasting is the first step in the integration of immigrants into society. Foreign satellite stations broadcast information about what happens in other countries. But often not a lot of information about small countries such as Sweden and the Netherlands. So how else should newcomers who don’t yet speak Swedish or Dutch get their information?

Her Swedish compatriot, Social Democrat MP, Helene Petersson, even goes so far as to say it’s important to broadcast in other languages in a democracy. Of course, people moving to her country should learn Swedish, but broadcasting in their language is another way of getting information out about public services.

Islamologist Hans Jansen of Utrecht University says Dutch should be the most important language in world if you live in the Netherlands. But I wonder, need it be the only language we hear on our airwaves here?

EuroQuest Special Program on Minority Language Broadcasting, Part II

2005-11-11T13:18:00.000+01:00

Does minority language broadcasting help immigrants integrate?

One of the guests on EQ this week is Professor Hans Jansen, a leading Dutch Arabist and Islamologist and outspoken opponent of multilingualism in broadcasting and education.

I read an article recently that he wrote back in May 2000, in which he said providing minorties living in the Netherlands with information in their own language prevents them from learning Dutch quickly. He said the numbers of minorities with language difficulties are much lower in countries such as the UK, Germany or France compared to the Netherlands.

He thinks this is (or rather was) because of the Dutch policy towards newcomers: the German, French and UK governments take it for granted that those who want to live in their country have to learn their language.

Professor Jansen says the Dutch on the other hand, go out of their way to provide minorities with information in their own language. For example, when newcomers arrive in the Netherlands they are told in their own language that they will have to learn Dutch. Jansen says they should be told this in Dutch! Telling them in their own language underminds the idea that they need to learn Dutch.

I’m not sure about this. It seems to me to imply that unless people are forced to learn the language of their new host country, they won’t bother. I mean, just because I listen to English-language radio, watch English-language TV programmes, it doesn’t mean that I don’t want to learn Dutch or that I’m not integrating or don’t want to try to. I take advantage of the English-language media but also of their Dutch equivalents. And in the same vein, just because minority language radio exists doesn’t have to mean that minorities would use them instead of the Dutch language media.

Take the following: another of the guests on EQ this week is Jorge Cuartas, Managing Director of Foquz Ethnomarketing. A survey carried out by his company showed that immigrants who speak Dutch at home read an equal number of Dutch newspapers as those who speak another language at home. And though they watch foreign language stations, they watch Dutch stuff, too....

But can immigrants do without domestic foreign language broadcasts??

(If you feel like commenting on this posting click just under this sentence.)

EuroQuest Special Program on Minority Language Broadcasting, Part I

2005-11-10T14:10:00.000+01:00

Does minority language broadcasting help immigrants integrate?

As Jonathan mentioned in his last post, this week’s EuroQuest, co-produced with Radio Sweden, looks at whether minority language broadcasting helps or hinders the integration of migrant communities into host countries.

Once upon a time, many European countries saw it as their obligation to help newcomers integrate by providing state sponsored broadcasts in diverse languages. But today, the Netherlands and Sweden have opted for two different approaches to the same issue.

This is because the Netherlands has chosen to reduce its broadcasts in minority languages, with the idea that learning Dutch, and Dutch only, will help migrant communities integrate. While Sweden believes this is partially true, it has also decided to maintain and even increase the broadcasting time for certain languages. So whose approach is the most valid?

Well, I don’t think there is an easy answer – but does it have to be either/or?

Take me for example. I’m a relative newcomer here in the Netherlands, having moved over just six months ago. And it seems to me that as an English speaker I could, if I wished, live quite easily in the Netherlands without ever having to learn Dutch. I produce English-language programs, I work mostly with other English speakers, I live with my English husband and I can listen to and watch English language radio and TV, and read English language newspapers. And every Dutch person I have met so far speaks amazing English - so ordering in shops or restaurants or going to the doctor is not a problem.

But I am learning Dutch because I want to and because I feel that it’s not possible to really get to know the people and culture of a country without learning their language. So I’m having Dutch lessons, I watch Dutch TV and I read the Dutch-language papers on my train ride to work every morning.

But at the same time I am very thankful for the English-language TV and radio that I have access to, and am eternally grateful for all the information I was given in English when I first moved here; about things like how the health system works, where to buy tram tickets, how to open a bank account and how to get a work permit. My first few weeks in the Netherlands would have been quite bewildering otherwise.

I wonder then what it would be like for those people arriving in the Netherlands speaking neither Dutch nor English?

More on that in part II tomorrow...

Want to hear news in Moroccan (they don't call it Arabic), click here: NPS. The NPS, or the Dutch Programming Foundation, is not only responsible for Dutch Sesame Street, but also ethnic language programming. Well, these broadcasts have been reduced from daily to once a week and will probably disappear altogether. The NPS itself is in danger of being done away with as part of a reorganization of the whole Dutch public broadcasting system. A sign of the times? You bet.....

(you can comment on this posting by clicking just under this sentence.)

EuroQuest Special Program on Minority Language Broadcasting

2005-11-08T12:57:00.000+01:00

And now for something completly different....

This week's EuroQuest was a special program recorded live from from the cultural/political cafe "de Balie" in Amsterdam and was coproduced Radio Sweden. Together myself, Jonathan Groubert, and Radio Sweden's Azariah Kiros hosted a round table discussion focusing on the role of minority language public broadcasting in an increasingly ethnically polarized Europe.
We asked the questions,"Does Minority Broadcasting help or hinder integration and should the government pay for it?"
There are guests from the Netherlands and Sweden with a contribution by Radio Prague. You can download a high quality version of the program here:

http://download.omroep.nl/rnw/partners/smac/euroquest/euroquest_200545.html

Or check out the podcast on the right, by going to iTunes or by going to one of the sites listed below:

PodNova:
http://www.podnova.com/
more_directories/podfeeder/podfeedercom_podcasts/
news/radio_netherlands_euroquest/

And the Yahoo Podcast Beta:

http://podcasts.yahoo.com/search?p=euroquest&c=b

Let us know what you think of this week's departure from our standard format. Also, I'm currently in New York and formulating thoughts on the coverage here of the French riots. Will post in a couple of days.

Common European Values? Let’s create them! Part 2

2005-11-04T08:25:00.000+01:00

With nothing other than geography in common, we need to create something to hold us together. We need to make membership to the European Union something valuable. Right now the currency of European credibility is simply too available and, therefore, too cheap. Letting in 10 member states in one go was simply too many. It frightened the older member states, they threw up labor barriers and this made the new EU members feel, justifiably, like second-class citizens. They have grown cynical and EU membership has lost value.

But we can fix this.

"Nothing pleaseth but rare accidents," said Shakespeare's hero Prince Hal in "Henry the IV, Part 1” as he revealed his plan to turn from rogue to hero, mend his loose-living ways and become the model king his father wished him to be. The EU, too, should make a transformation. Let the highest social, cultural and economic standards in the world become Common European Values.

One way of doing this is to increase the membership barriers. Not to keep the unwashed hordes out, but to increase the value of EU membership by making it difficult to achieve. It should, indeed, be an exclusive club where only the most developed nations, economically and socially, may join. Help acceding nations with structural funds and political aid, demand cultural change. Most importantly, don’t let any acceding state in until they’re ready.

This is already happening to certain extent. Brussels recently warned Bulgaria and Romania that their scheduled entry into the EU could be delayed unless they step up the fight against corruption. This is good for the EU and good for the Bulgarian and Romanian peoples, currently living under governments that have no political will to tackle the big issues. Well, now maybe they will.

In the end, this is the only way we can to it. We need to finally be brave enough to take that final step and turn a united Europe from a frightening idea into (oh boy!) a wished for ideal. As Prince Hal said, “When they seldom come, they wished for come”.

I'm off to New York for a week. Will post from there.
In the meantime, feel free to leave your own comments by quicking on the link below this line.

Common European Values? Let’s create them! Part 1

2005-11-02T14:43:00.000+01:00

Oh boy.
This is the first official posting for the EuroBlog and we’re already in trouble.

This week’s EuroQuest asks what are European Values (hereafter to be known as EVs)? As if there is such a thing. As if we can collectively point to the map of the continent and say, “Yes, all the people who live in this part of the world believe in civil rights, open societies, the separation between church and state, secular humanist morals and the social welfare state.” This is simply not so.

Former EU Commission President Romano Prodi, bless him, went in search of EVs in 2002. He hired 12 great European thinkers and asked them to find this elusive thing called “European Identity.”
They failed.

In the end, one of the wise men said, “Every attempt to codify European values is inevitably confronted by a variety of diverging national, regional, ethnic, sectarian and social understandings”. In other words, we’re simply too different, in every way, to go around generalizing about what it means to be European. Look at the results of the French “Non” and the Dutch “Nee” to the European Constitution. If you can make the pro Europe Dutch say no, something has really gone wrong.

The “Atlas of European Values” is a comprehensive tome answering every question from which European country is the most secular, to which is the happiest. A brief glance through this book shows that the only generalization you can make about Europeans is that we are really, really different in every way.

So what are the consequences of this? Answer: If we can’t define our “Europeanness” from the inside out, we go around looking for someone to which we can compare ourselves. Luckily for us, the only remaining superpower in the world happens to be a federation of states laden with geographical, historical and religious differences: the US. Unfortunately for us, they patched up most their most serious differences about 140 or so years ago. America is a cohesive nation where most people speak the same language, watch the same TV and get the same cultural signals in schools that more or less offer the same curricula and teach the same ideas about civic values. Oh boy. We don’t do any of that. Blue state or red state, they all share the same sense that, as a nation, they share the same history and, more importantly, the same destiny. Double oh boy. “And if you come from somewhere else, don’t worry, we all are. We’ll make an American of you yet.” Triple oh boy.

It is not alarmist to say that we simply must get over our past and believe, as do the Americans, that Europe, whole and unified, is our version of manifest destiny. (But then without all that nasty killing of native cultures.) Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl once stated that the European Union is the difference between war and peace on the continent. I don’t often quote Kohl, but on this he’s dead right.

But I've got a way to fix this.
More on Friday!!!!!!

(By the way, you can comment on this posting by clicking just under this sentence.)

EuroQuest Here on Earth

2005-10-27T11:58:00.000+02:00

Folks, I'm going to appear on Wisconsin Public Radio's "Here on Earth" Program. The topic is an interesting one: European Values. As in, is there really such a thing as Common European Values?

Listen to this program or to next week's EuroQuest and then let us know what you think. Comment on the shows and I'll let you know what I think too.

Here's our ad info. It also explains how to listen/participate:

Jonathan Groubert, the producer/presenter of Radio Netherlands' European Affairs magazine, EuroQuest, will
be the featured guest on Wisconsin Public Radio's global call-in show "Here On Earth" on Sunday, 30 October at 9PM in Europe, 7PM UTC or 2PM CT in the US.
He and host Jean Feraca will be discussing this impossible to define thing called European Values. Do European Values exist? If so, what are they? If not, can the European Union ever truly be unified or is it doomed to failure?
And is Turkey European?
You can listen to the programme live via the web. You can also call in and participate. From outside the US, e-mail HereOnEarth@wpr.org. Include your phone number: they'll call you back, or call them at +1 608 263 1890.
From inside the USA call 1-800-642-1234.

Podcasts

2005-10-24T15:13:00.000+02:00

We're finalizing the details for our blog, but in the meantime please note that we have joined in on that wonderful little bit of push technology known as Podcasting (see vertical bar to the right). We can also be found on iTunes (I'm told).
I do know for sure that EuroQuest has also been aggregated at the following locations. PodNova:
http://www.podnova.com/
more_directories/podfeeder/podfeedercom_podcasts/
news/radio_netherlands_euroquest/

And the Yahoo Podcast Beta:

http://podcasts.yahoo.com/search?p=euroquest&c=b

Please sign up for these and make our gloriously quirkly look at life in Europe freakishly popular.

Cheers