Our German translator JLH reads everything in the German media so that you don’t have to. Here’s his selection of headlines from over the weekend to give you an idea of what’s going on in Mitteleuropa these days.
What do the weekend German-language publications think is worth their top headline?
Luxembourg: Luxemburger Wort
Sharp Criticism from Turkey: Erdogan Accuses Germany Of “Nazi Practices”
In recent weeks several Turkish ministers have been refused campaign appearances in Germany. Erdogan used the occasion of World Women’s Day to campaign for a “yes” vote on a referendum for a presidential system of government in Turkey. Thousands of women in Istanbul and elsewhere were on the streets to demonstrate for “no.”
Liechtenstein: Liechtensteiner Volksblatt
Odebrecht Paid Protection Money to FARC [Columbian anti-government guerrillas]. Corruption Scandal surrounding Brazilian Building Concern
International demands for investigation, Corruption scandal threatens to involve much of Latin America and beyond — see Fausta’s Blog.
Austria:
Erdogan: Rejection of Politicians’ Appearances Like “Nazi Practices”
Extended version of story in Luxembourg paper. The Netherlands also opposes appearance of Turkish foreign minister Cavosoglu in Rotterdam.
Front Against Turkey Election Campaign
Austrian Chancellor Kern in favor of EU-wide ban.
Still Unclear Who Used Chemical Weapons — 45,000 Civilians Flee The Fighting In West Mosul
[Self-explanatory]
Switzerland:
Battle Of A Desperate Man
The struggle of François Fillon to stay in the French presidential race, despite charges of nepotism.
Sexual Abuse — Jehovah’s Witnesses Silent
Allegations of widespread abuse overtake the sect as it has its annual meeting In Zurich.
Prices Of Hotel Rooms Have Consistently Fallen For 4 Years
Visitors are happy. Hoteliers are not.
Germany:
Germany’s Military: Due To The Savings Diktat, The Armed Forces Are A Platform For Leftovers
The dangerous deficiencies in equipment and personnel highlighted by reaction to Mattis’s words to the EU.
Horrifying Drama In Baden-Württemberg. Father Dead, Mother And Son Gravely Injured.
Nobody knows what happened.
Interview With SPD Faction Leader, Raed Saleh: “We Can Still Make Gains Among Immigrants”
A pro-immigrant socialist party official answering moderately an interviewer who wants to hear that Sarrazin damaged the party and that they need to appeal to immigrant voters.
Erdogan Accuses Germany Of “Nazi Practices”
[As above]
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
After Charges Of Phone-Tapping, Trump Demands A Congressional Investigation Of Obama
Well, everybody over here knows about that.
The Radicals Next Door
Several young to middle-aged men accused of causing an explosion which could have killed someone, and did damage to property at the headquarters of Die Linke (the Left) in Freital. Intimations of influence by Pegida, an actual contact of one of them by Facebook to NPD, reasons = hate of foreigners, etc. Vignettes of the men, emphasizing how ordinary they were until something happened and they are now supposed to be right-wing terrorists.
Preussische Allgemeine Zeitung
The UN Accuses Us
Why Africans Must Fear Us Germans, What A Good Lobbyist Needs To Know And What Our Millionaires Are Running From
The UN sends “experts” to find out why black Africans fear Germans (and nonetheless can’t wait to arrive there in the hundreds of thousands) — for instance because of prejudicial names like “Moor Street” (five in the whole country!)
And are the German millionaires fleeing, like the French millionaires before them, because of “religious tensions”? Or are they scared to death of the Islamists?
Dissatisfied US President — Never Before Seen so Furious
Friday, before taking off for Mar-a-Lago, in the “holy-of-holies” of American democracy, the Oval Office, Trump “hit the roof” over his people reacting wrongly to the accusations against Jeff Sessions. Of course, the real reason for dissatisfaction is that he and his people haven’t been able to make the transition from campaigning to ruling.
Thank you JLH for this great service!
Schweden: Reise- und Sicherheitshinweise
Stand 06.03.2017
Aktuelle Hinweise
Anfang März 2016 wurde die Terrorwarnstufe für Schweden von „hoch“ auf „erhöht“ herabgestuft und gilt seitdem fort.
Reisende in Stockholm werden weiterhin gebeten, sich in der Stadt sowie in öffentlichen Verkehrsmitteln umsichtig zu bewegen, größere Menschenansammlungen zu meiden und in jedem Fall Weisungen der schwedischen Sicherheitskräfte zu befolgen. Besonders während religiöser Feiertage und auf Großveranstaltungen wie Konzerten oder Festivals sind besondere Aufmerksamkeit und Wachsamkeit geboten.
Aufgrund der aktuellen Flüchtlingssituation hat Schweden vorübergehend wieder Grenzkontrollen eingeführt. Vor Betreten von Fähren nach Schweden sowie Bussen, Zügen und Fähren von Dänemark nach Schweden ist ein gültiges Reisedokument vorzuweisen (siehe auch Abschnitt „Einreisebestimmungen“). Reisende sollten mit kurzfristig auftretenden Behinderungen im Reiseverkehr und damit verbundenen Wartezeiten rechnen.
Das Auswärtige Amt rät dringend von der Mitnahme unbekannter Personen, die möglicherweise nicht über einen gültigen Ausweis oder Einreisevisum verfügen, ab. Dies könnte als Schleusung strafrechtlich verfolgt werden. Näheres siehe unter Allgemeine Reiseinformationen
[Machine translation:
Sweden: travel and safety instructions
Stand 06.03.2017
Current information
At the beginning of March 2016 the terrorist warning level for Sweden was reduced from “high” to “increased” and has been continuing since then.
Travelers in Stockholm are also asked to be prudent in the city as well as in public transport, to avoid larger crowds, and in any case to follow instructions from the Swedish security forces. Especially during religious holidays and at major events such as concerts or festivals, special attention and vigilance are required.
Due to the current refugee situation Sweden has temporarily introduced border controls again. A valid travel document has to be shown before entering ferries to Sweden as well as buses, trains and ferries from Denmark to Sweden (see also section “Entry requirements”). Travelers should expect short-term disabilities in the travel industry and associated waiting times.
The Foreign Office strongly advises that unknown persons, who may not have a valid identity card or entry visa, should be taken away. This could be prosecuted as a smuggling offense. For details, see General Travel Information]