Central Europe rallies behind Croatia's bid to begin EU membership talks
18.3.2005 - Dita Asiedu

The European Union has decided to postpone accession talks with Croatia that were scheduled to begin last Thursday. Croatia needs to cooperate fully with the ICTY (International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia). Several EU countries, especially Britain, the Netherlands and Germany, have accused Croatia of not trying hard enough to capture the war crimes suspect General Ante Gotovina. But Austria, Hungary, Slovenia and Slovakia would have liked to see accession talks begin right away.

What is the Czech Republic's standpoint and why do Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, and Slovenia say talks should start regardless? Are they undermining the authority of the war crimes tribunal? We spoke to Ivan Busniak, a former Czech ambassador to Zagreb:

"Basically, the position of the Czech government is in line with the position of those led by Austria and it certainly is not a position that undermines the ICTY. Everyone within the European Union fully understands the importance of the ICTY and the necessity of the Croat government to do everything possible to have General Gotovina in The Hague as early as possible.

"On the other hand, what needs to be taken into account is that because of one individual man within the context of otherwise very good cooperation of the Croat government with the ICTY, this should not be taken as a reason to postpone the opening of accession talks. We all have enough instruments and possibilities within the European Union to suspend or slow down the talks with Croatia or put pressure on Croatia, if Gotovina is not brought to The Hague early."

Now, General Gotovina is accused of being responsible for the murder of 100 ethnic Serbs and expulsion of a further 150,000 during an operation ten years ago, to recapture Croatian lands. Some Croatians view him as their hero. The Croatian government says it does not know where General Gotovina is and that it is very likely that he is no longer on Croatian territory. The UN chief prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte has been sceptical, saying he is within the reach of the Croatian authorities. What do you think, as a former ambassador to Zagreb?

"Yes, you are right in saying that there is some information that Gotovina may still be in Croatia or may be on the lose somewhere very close to Croatia, such as in neighbouring Bosnia Herzegovina, for example. Some EU member countries also say that they have intelligence information that there are some people in Croatia, who are helping General Gotovina flee justice and avoid getting captured.

"But, we don't have this intelligence information and we cannot really be sure whether Gotovina is in Croatia or not. That is why in this, a little bit confused, situation we do not see it as a sufficient reason to postpone the talks but since there was no agreement within the EU 25, we take note of the decision and simply hope that Croatia will do everything possible so that in the shortest possible period of time there is going to be a confirmation by the Council of Foreign Ministers that Croatia is fully cooperating with the ICTY.

It's interesting to see that it is the EU member states from this region, which are backing Croatia...

"Well, it would be very difficult to give you an exact answer and I wouldn't like to speculate. As far as the Czech Republic is concerned, it has been known that we consider the western Balkans, in particular, as a region of Europe which is very close to our heart and in which we have long-standing traditional presence - cultural, political, and economic. Particularly in this area, we also have the biggest military contingent that we have abroad - in the KFOR in Kosovo. So, as far as the Czech Republic is concerned, I cannot speak on behalf of the others, we do think we have some knowledge and understanding of the situation there and we are highly interested in the process of rapprochement of this region with the European Union is unhampered."

Poland in political turmoil
18.3.2005 - Krystyna Kolosowska

Poland's political scene never seems to have been in greater disarray than it is today - rocked by scandals and bitter disputes between left and right. All this is compounded by attacks by Catholic right wing groupings which argue that the historic round table debate of 1989, which ended communism in Poland, was just a farce during which the communists and Solidarity activists divided influence between them.

Lech Walesa, free Poland's first president until 1995 and before that the charismatic leader of the Solidarity trade union, was shouted and whistled at when he visited the northern city of Gizycko these days. The protests were launched by the League of Polish Families and All-Poland Youths, whose representatives argue that Walesa was a communist era secret police agent. Walesa has had his name cleared but the attacks have gained momentum now that Poland is heading for the general election. The pre-election fight is also mirrored in the proceedings of a parliamentary commission investigating the scandal with the privatization of Poland's biggest company - the Orlen oil giant. One of its victims is President Aleksander Kwasniewski.

The most popular leftist politician, Kwasniewski created uproar with his refusal to testify before the commission and accusing it of unjustified fierce attacks on him and his family.

"Such politicized commissions, appointed by the parliament cannot assume the role of the judiciary. It would be absurd and a step towards undermining the rule of law in Poland".

After an anti-climatic start, the Orlen commission seems determined to nail down Kwasniewski. Judging by the headline on the front pages of popular weeklies - such as "The End Kwasniewski's World", it at least succeeded in crashing his ambitions.

The political scene is in disarray. With its four years in power marred by corruption scandals, the ruling Left has record low support, while the right side of the political scene is growing more and more vibrant. On May 5th, the parliament is to vote a motion on its dissolution and early spring elections. The ruling SLD favors the autumn timing of parliamentary election to postpone its imminent defeat. And with the support of independent MPs it seems certain to block the motion. All this creates a sense of instability, but political analysts believe that it has little impact on Poland's international image. Analyst Marek Matraszek.

"Polish political scene at the moment is in its greatest period of turmoil for over 10 years perhaps with parties collapsing, governments collapsing in corruption scandals and other activities. From what I can see actually this really isn't translating into any media attention in the foreign press. I haven't seen really a major article in any significant media outlet in Western Europe or the United States. This is very much into the Polish battle, but I think it's only conceivable that it may emerge at some state".

Professor Stanislaw Gomolka, senior lecturer at the London School of Economics, shares this view.

"My contacts with foreign investors and analysts of various financial institutions in the city of London and other places is: they intend to ignore quite a lot of political noise coming from Poland. They look above at key fundamentals of Polish economy and they are rather impressed by what they see".

Prime Minister Marek Belka, who is in favor of a snap poll in the spring, has threatened to resign rather than carry on till the end of the term, if the left blocks the measure. Indeed, a rule by a weak government formed by a party with little credibility could give a spur to populist parties.

This, says professor Gomolka, may worry foreign investors.

"Now at the moment financial community, both actually inside the country and abroad, assumes that this new government will be led by Mr. Rokita and that the Civic Platform will be the key component of the new coalition. If the result is different than that, if for instance Mr. Kaczynski becomes the prime minister and his party wins the election, I suppose this could be a highly destabilizing factor. But even like League of Polish Families and Self Defense party would win the election this could be a disaster."

Marek Matraszek believes that in the long-term - the political situation in Poland is unlikely to have a negative impact on Poland's foreign economic relations, business contacts and ability to attract investors.

"In the short term there may be a concern. I certainly receive a lot of phone calls from investors - the banking community especially, wondering what on earth is going on in Poland. However, in the long run, I think, there are two main facts, much more important than short term political instability, long term economic statistics, factors, long term growth. And that's very healthy in Poland. And, I think, secondly, after the new government comes into effect later on this year that will be another significant benefit for Poland. It will mean stability for one, and secondly, it will be a very reformist government: lower taxation, more encouragement for foreign investors, more privatizations. I think, in the medium to long term, things are looking pretty good for Poland."

The leadership of the ruling Democratic Left Alliance has failed to persuade Prime Minister Marek Belka to remain in office until the end of the parliamentary term in the autumn. But the premier's resignation in May could be rejected by President Aleksander Kwasniewski.

Slovene-Austrian relations strained over Austria's Slovene Minority
18.3.2005 - Michael Manske

Disagreement over the Slovenian minority living in Austria broke out this week, sparked by a comment made by an Austrian official about the Austrian State Treaty. The treaty deals with the protection of minorities in Austria.

The Speaker of the Austrian Parliament, Andreas Khol, soured relations between Slovenia and Austria last month by saying that Slovenia was not party to the Austrian State Treaty. Article 7 of that treaty covers the rights and protection of the Slovenian and Croatian minorities in Austria, most of whom are concentrated in the southern Austrian state of Carinthia. Technically, the statement is correct: Slovenia didn't exist as an independent state when the treaty was signed 50 years ago - it was still part of Yugoslavia.

However, Slovenia still qualifies as a legal successor to Yugoslavia, a point Slovenian diplomats were quick to point out. In an attempt at reconciliation, Khol arrived in the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana this week to hold talks with high-level politicians. He immediately calmed Slovenian fears by saying that his comments had been misunderstood, and that Austria and Slovenia were in agreement about the treaty.

"I just want to say that the entire delegation dealt with the question of the Slovenian minority in Austria very openly and that there is a consensus. The state treaty, ladies and gentlemen, is not disputed. The state treaty is a fact."

According to a recent census, there are roughly 14.000 Slovenes living in Carinthia, out of a total population of more than half a million people. As an officially recognized minority, Slovenes there are guaranteed such things as a Slovene-language radio program, RADIO DVA, which is funded by Austrian national broadcaster ORF and transmitted throughout southern Carinthia. There are also Slovenian kindergartens in Carinthia, with roughly 18 groups and roughly 400 children.

The problems begin with the thorny issue of dual-language signs, which the current government (led by the conservative populist Joerg Haider) has been loathe to implement. Three years ago, Austria's constitutional court ordered Carinthia to put up the bilingual signs in Slovene and German, but the project is still at a standstill.

Austria's Speaker of parliament Andreas Khol insists that there is agreement in parliament, and that it will eventually be solved:

"With regard to the difficult question of road signs, we still have a way to go. But even here there is consensus among all parties of the parliament. Things just haven't been finished.

This means that we shouldn't concentrate on false problems. We want to make our Slovenian minority into a bridge between Slovenia and Austria."

Another point discussed by both sides was the inclusion of representatives of the Slovenian minority within the local parliament of Carinthia. The idea found support in Slovenia's parliamentary speaker France Cukjati:

"Of course, this idea is a good one. We support this idea and discussed the issue today. I must say that with regard to minorities in the local government in Carinthia, we reached an agreement with our partner. I believe this internal, political question for Austria and Carinthia will be solved to the advantage of the Slovenian minority."

A meeting on Sunday to discuss some of these issues, however, ended without any agreement. A similar conference, held in 2002, similarly collapsed without consensus. The Slovenian newspaper DELO, for its part, questioned the entire idea of holding consensus talks, pointing out that the Austrian Constitutional Court had already made its decision in favor of the bilingual signs in 2001.

The momentum was further slowed down on Tuesday, when Carinthian Governor Joerg Haider announced that the Austrian State Treaty was not relevant to the issue of bilingual signs. Slovenian groups in Carinthia continue to insist that it is.

So the deadlock continues, despite efforts by both sides to bridge it.

Slovak high school students protest against new "maturita"
18.3.2005 - Katarina Richterova

D-Day for every Slovak high school pupil: you walk into a classroom, up to a table with a dark green cloth and teachers sitting behind it. This is how Slovak pupils are examined when they are ready to leave high school at 18. The oral graduation exams are known as the "maturita" and have been present in the country for centuries. This year breaking the tradition and introducing a reformed maturita has met disapproval from high school graduates.

The very word "maturita" evokes fright in many people. However, what we have known as the maturita up to now is nothing in comparison to what this year's 18-year-olds will have to undertake.

At the beginning of the school year high school graduates demonstrated their disapproval of the reforms and loudly protested saying this kind of maturita is much more demanding than the older type. Despite this, the reforms are going ahead and school leaving examinations will be carried out this year in the new form. And for what reasons? Dana Pichanicova from the National Institute for education specifies:

"The main aim of the new maturita examination is to raise its objectiveness and validity and to reach its acceptance in countries of the European Union and finally also to meet standardization of demands on students."

The maturita now will be composed of two parts. An internal - the traditional oral part carried out within the school - and an external new part, in the form of unified tests that will be evaluated outside of the school according to nationwide standards. As specialists say, the lack of unification was the biggest shortcoming of the old type of school leaving examination. Dana Pichanicova:

"For instance the grade one (or A) at one school wasn't possible to compare with one (A) at other schools. So there were great differences between the performances of students."

Because until now the examination was based only on oral answers teachers could give preferential treatment to their favourite students, apply double standards and thus disfavour the students they were not so fond of. This should now change thanks to the external written tests. Since 2000 there have been trials with the external part of maturita. As Dana Pichanicova from National Institute for education says the monitoring showed the following.

"It showed great differences between students of different schools, but also vast differences between students of one school."

This means that sometimes a student that would receive an A in the oral examination, turned out to get a much worse grade in the written exam. As Mrs. Pichanicova says the analysis reveled where the problem really lies.

"The real problem is in particular in different attitudes or approaches of individual teachers."

The new reform may seem like the perfect solution. But certainly for this year's graduates this will mean more and more tests in an already very stressful period. The new maturita will be stressful not only for students but also their teachers. Now the way they work will be more visible, as their students will be compared with those of other teachers, says the principal at a Bratislava high School, Mrs. Gabriela Dornakova.

"It is scaring for them, of course. Because if it happens for two or thee years that all of my students are doing very bad that means my work is not good either. I would send such a teacher away from my school and hire another one."

One of the biggest changes in the examination will be the fact that students will have 5 subjects compulsory for graduation, and one of them a science subject. One positive aspect of the reform is that gradually the school-leaving examination should also take the place of university entry exams. Also it is expected that in future these test results will also be recognized by foreign universities. In the long run the reforms could lead to higher academic standards and more competition among schools.

An appeal to the courts about the unfairness of this year's maturitas will most probably not be found legitimate, so graduates will have to do the learning. Good luck!

Art Spiegelman's "Maus" exhibited at Budapest's subway
18.3.2005 - Sandor Laczko

Jewish mice, Nazi cats and Polish rats - you would not really expect such cartoon characters to appear in front of you when you travel the underground in Budapest. But, in fact, that's what you encounter as artwork from Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize-winning Holocaust graphic novel Maus, based on the experiences of his parents during the Holocaust, has been put on display in Budapest's subway.

Radio Budapest spoke with the press officer of the Budapest Holocaust Memorial Center, Eva Vajda, a few days after the opening of the exhibition:

"The book became a bestseller in the United States and in Western Europe partly because it was so unexpected to use such a style to portray such a serious issue, the Holocaust. We wanted to do something for the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp and so we agreed with quite a successful young-style publisher that they would publish the book by that date and we introduced the book at the Holocaust Memorial Centre on January 27.

We wanted to run a campaign not just about the book but about the issue itself and found that this style, Art Spiegelman's method to draw Jews as mice and the Nazis as cats was quite a good way to attract the young audience, who are not as informed about the issue."

What are your expectations? What do people feel when they look at the exhibits in this unusual environment?

"We do not have high expectations. We wanted to attract attention and we wanted people to ask questions. A few people will think about it and that's really all we wanted to achieve."