Turkey ranks first among the number of countries convicted for rights violations by the European Court of Human Rights in 2010. Russia is on second position of the list of 47 countries. Main reasons for Turkey's convictions were the fairness or the length of trials. Among 47 countries under the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg, Turkey ranks at the top position regarding the number of convictions in 2010. The court decided 278 files of applicants from Turkey. 228 of these cases comprised violations of at least one article of the European Convention on Human Rights, the court announced. Only nine files concerning Turkey did not include any violation of rights as ruled by the ECHR. Turkey is followed by Russia (217 judgments), Romania (143) and the Ukraine (109). At the same time, the work load of the ECHR has considerably increased according to the court's statement. "Approximately 139,650 applications were pending before a judicial formation on 1 January 2011. More than half of these applications had been lodged against one of four countries: Russia, Turkey, Romania or Ukraine", the court announced. 10.9 percent of all applications come from Turkey. In 2010, the ECHR considered a total of 41,000 applications. 1,499 decisions came out of 2,607 applications. 37 percent of all decisions made by the Strasbourg court were related to violations of the right to a fair trial. Decisions regarding Turkey were mostly based on violations in aspect to the fairness and the length of trials.
II. EKATHIMERINI - Greece braces for possible migrant influx from Egypt
Citizens’ Protection Minister Christos Papoutsis chaired a meeting of security chiefs on Monday morning as Greece prepares for a possible influx of immigrants from Egypt and other North African countries. The chiefs of police, coast guard and national intelligence attended the meeting, which was aimed at developing a strategy for dealing with a possible spike in the number of undocumented immigrants trying to enter Greece after anti-government protest in Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt. The meeting is also likely to have been driven by the government’s concern that it should look proactive on the issue of illegal immigration after apparently being caught out by a protest last week by more than 230 immigrants at Athens University’s Law School. The hunger-striking immigrants are now housed in another building in central Athens and in tents in its courtyard. Campaigners have said that the building is too small to accommodate all the protesters and about 100 of them are having to sleep in tents.
The President of Cyprus, Dimitris Christofias, on Sunday said that the decision of his country to recognize a Palestinian state in 1988 remains valid, according to an official statement. Speaking on the borders of the future Palestinian state, the president said Cyprus "is in line with the EU well known position that it will not recognize any changes to the pre-1967 borders, unless agreed by the two parties." The statement also said that the Cyprus government stresses the "utmost importance of the resumption of talks between the two parties as soon as possible for a solution of the Palestinian issue through negotiations." The statement contradicts earlier reports that Christofias sent a new declaration of recognition to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
IV. B92 - Kosovo messy affair, run by criminals
Former Dutch State Secretary for European Affairs Frans Timmermans warned the U.S. in late 2007 that Kosovo was "run by people who live off crime". This has emerged in a leaked U.S. diplomatic cable obtained by the Wikileaks whistleblowing website. "Timmermans was concerned about the future implications of the EU's outreach to Kosovo: Kosovo is run by people who live off crime...(they have) no other means to support themselves," Timmermans said, reported U.S. officials who met with him in The Hague. The meeting took place in November 2007, ahead of the February 2008 unilateral declaration of independence made by the province's ethnic Albanians. According to this, Timmermans "noted that Russia was creating havoc in the Balkans, and Kosovo will be a messy affair." He was also quoted as saying that the Russians "will react strongly, and the European reaction will be all over the place," once the proclamation has been made in Priština. The leaked cable comes as the reputation of Kosovo's Albanian leaders has been dealt a series of blows, including the human organ trafficking report put together by Council of Europe Special Rapporteur Dick Marty. Last week, the Guardian newspaper published what it said were leaked NATO documents, that named Kosovo Albanian Prime Minister and former KLA leader Hashim Thaci as one of the "biggest fish" in organized crime in Kosovo.
Three Moroccans, one a Muslim cleric, were arrested in Italy on suspicion of training recruits for international terrorism, Italian police said. The imam of Sellia Marina and his son were arrested at their home in Calabria Monday and the third person arrested is part of the Moroccan community of Lamezia Terme, ANSA reported. Authorities also searched the homes of nine other people, arresting one for possession of marijuana. The arrests stemmed from a "complex" investigation by security police and Italy's postal police, the report said. Investigators said the men used the Internet to receive and send "multimedia documents about arms and explosives training" and possessed software that "could be used to sabotage computer systems."
VI. RIANOVOSTI - Munich conference to discuss Russia-NATO missile defense network
The creation of a joint Russia-NATO missile defense network will be a key issue on the agenda of the upcoming global security conference in Munich, a German diplomat said on Monday. Russia and NATO agreed to cooperate in the creation of the European missile defense system in Lisbon in November last year. The parties plan to formulate terms for missile defense cooperation by June 2011. "The creation of a joint missile defense network is important not only from a military standpoint but also because it helps to form political trust," Chairman of the Munich Security Conference Wolfgang Ischinger said. Ischinger added that a new working group in the framework of the conference had been set up to focus on the issue of missile defense, which becomes paramount for future strategic arms reductions. The 47th Munich Security Conference, to be held February 4-6, will bring together senior figures from around the world to engage in an intensive debate on current and future security challenges. During the conference, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. State Secretary Hillary Clinton could exchange ratification documents on the new Russian-U.S. strategic arms reduction treaty, putting the new arms deal into effect after it was ratified by the lawmakers of both countries. The treaty slashes the Russian and U.S. nuclear arsenals to a maximum of 1,550 nuclear warheads.
When the Green Bay Packers face the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV on February 6, Orthodox Christians throughout the US will be tackling hunger in their parishes through the "Souper Bowl of Caring." The world is facing its worst hunger crisis in half a century, according to Bread for the World. An estimated 925 million people are hungry, including almost 16,000 children who die each day from hunger-related causes -- one child every five seconds. "On the field the game will come down to a battle between two historic franchises," said Constantine M. Triantafilou, executive director of International Orthodox Christian Charities [IOCC]. "But long after the winner is determined -- in small fields throughout Kosovo, Albania, the West Bank, Ethiopia, and elsewhere that IOCC serves -- the fight against hunger will continue through projects that help people to produce food in sustainable ways for their families." The "Souper Bowl of Caring" is observed each year on Super Bowl Sunday as a way to mobilize youth to fight hunger and poverty. Young people collect monetary and food donations in their parishes and then give them directly to charities of their choice. Started in a church in South Carolina, the Souper Bowl of Caring includes participants of all faiths. IOCC has been encouraging Orthodox Christian youth to participate in the service activity for the past thirteen years. Established in March 1992 as the official humanitarian organization of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas, IOCC is a member of the ACT Alliance, a global coalition of churches and agencies engaged in development, humanitarian assistance and advocacy. More information on the "Souper Bowl of Caring" may be found on IOCC's website be clicking here.