Central and eastern Europe

REPORT central and eastern europe : Silence of statues in Budapest's Memento Park, House of Terror

Silence of statues in Budapest's Memento Park, House of Terror

Budapest’s Park, built shortly after the fall of communism, commemorates the visual iconography of four decades under communist rule in the Hungarian capital. In sharp contrast to its frozen lethargy, the House of Terror bursts with life. Could things have been different for Hungary today if it had a revolution back in 1989?

by Vuksa Velickovic @ // 14/05/12

central and eastern europe, lenin, joseph stalin, cold war, second world war , hungary, reagan

ANALYSIS central and eastern europe : Pan-Slavism, Slovio and Polish the 'status symbol'

Pan-Slavism, Slovio and Polish the 'status symbol'

The Slavic languages all have their roots in Proto-Slavic. Since the twelfth century, however, they have drifted apart. One of them reached its zenith in the seventeenth century: Polish

by dennis maschmann // 16/11/11

central and eastern europe, tower of babel, languages, esperanto, poland, russian federation, slovakia

INTERVIEW central and eastern europe : Double discrimination: roma women in central and eastern Europe

Double discrimination: roma women in central and eastern Europe

Romania has recently announced plans to evict roma from the northern town of Baia Mare, in a move which could leave hundreds homeless. The move emphasises the continued urgency of the theme ‘roma women in central and eastern Europe’, discussed during the European women's lobby’s conference in Budapest on 7 April this year. The lobby aims to bring the double discrimination that roma women endure to the attention of European decision-makers. Interview with Brigitte Triems, the lobby's president

by Linda Krajcso @ // 01/09/11

central and eastern europe, discrimination, hungary, budapest, violence, european commission, roma minorities

ANALYSIS central and eastern europe : Arab spring 2011 and Europe’s fall of communism in 1989

Arab spring 2011 and Europe’s fall of communism in 1989

As the Maghreb goes through its transitions, a look at the lessons learned from central and eastern Europe. Opinion from Daniel Novotny, deputy director of the research centre at the association for international affairs in Prague

by Daniel Novotny @ // 24/05/11

central and eastern europe, 1989, morocco, sub-saharan africa, conflict, peace, post-soviet states

INTERVIEW central and eastern europe : Ukraine feminists ‘Femen’: topless a political weapon

Ukraine feminists ‘Femen’: topless a political weapon

At first the 300 members of the feminist community came to the streets to protest against the expansion of sex tourism in the Ukraine. The 12, 000 active 'sex pats' are growing under the indifferent gaze of the authorities. Femen has been organising nude performances as a political weapon for three years now. After a run-in at the Italian embassy, Inna Shevechenko vents her anger

by Emmanuel Haddad @ // 01/03/11

central and eastern europe, feminism, censorship, sexuality, sex, silvio berlusconi, italy

OPINION central and eastern europe : Albania-Kosovo mafia, ‘cablegate’ and other cases of blindness

Albania-Kosovo mafia, ‘cablegate’ and other cases of blindness

After two years of investigation, the council of Europe has accused the Kosovan prime minister of leading an international network trafficking organs, weapons and heroin with the silent acquiescence of European countries. Will these Wiki-Like revelations destroy public confidence in politics? Here's a little theory on scepticism

by Aníbal Tierno @ // 20/12/10

central and eastern europe, organ trafficking, corruption, nato, best of cafebabel.com, kosovo, drugs

OPINION central and eastern europe : Alice in Belarus (Wonderland): politician tries to enter local elections

Alice in Belarus (Wonderland): politician tries to enter local elections

This is the story of Olga Karatch, a Belarusian dissident and 'Nash Dom' human rights activist, and her participation in local elections in Belarus. Those were in May 2010, but Olga’s testimony has lost none of its relevance. Unfortunately, it's all too synonymous with the state of Belarusian politics as a whole, and with elections looming on 19 December

by Olga_Karatch @ // 22/11/10

central and eastern europe, censorship, post-soviet states, human rights, minsk, media, alexander lukashenko

INVESTIGATION central and eastern europe : Building a mosque in Warsaw: is it all trouble and strife?

Building a mosque in Warsaw: is it all trouble and strife?

Muslims in Poland go back several centuries, beginning with the arrival of tatar settlers in the eastern reaches of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The muslim community in Poland has only recently begun attracting attention, with the building of a mosque financed by a Saudi sponsor in the Warsaw district of Ochota. Not everyone is happy

by cafebabel.com @ , Andrea @ // 19/11/10

central and eastern europe, racism, warsaw, islamophobia, extremism, populism, religion

REPORT central and eastern europe : Communism perspectives: 'discontinuous history of art in eastern Europe'

Communism perspectives: 'discontinuous history of art in eastern Europe'

3 October marked twenty years after the fall of the communist regime. One exhibition in Paris this summer asked the central question: is there any value in the question of 'east-west’ opposition today?

by Mélodie Labro @ // 03/10/10

central and eastern europe, paris, albania, romania, photography, culture calendar, exposition

PORTRAIT central and eastern europe : Esma Redzepova: 'Roma are cosmopolitan'

Esma Redzepova: 'Roma are cosmopolitan'

A mother of 47, a career spanning 20 albums and 40 years and songs in Serbian, Macedonian and Romany. At the Sin Fronteras festival in France, the Macedonian 'gypsy music queen' brings a bit of Roma culture to a country which is planning to export large numbers of its gypsy population 'back' to Romania and Bulgaria by the end of the month

by Julia Korbik @ // 13/08/10

central and eastern europe, paris, greece, roma, multiculturalism, family, brunch

INVESTIGATION central and eastern europe : 'Come to Romania': quest to brand Bucharest

'Come to Romania': quest to brand Bucharest

Forging a skate culture, redesigning lei banknotes and offering a story to tourists, aside from the palace of parliament hotspot, the result of dictator Ceaucescu's tearing down a third of the city in communist times. These are just some of the ideas to boost the image and GDP of a crisis-riddled country

by Nabeelah Shabbir @ // 16/07/10

central and eastern europe, money, advertising, bucharest, centrist, architecture, romania

INVESTIGATION central and eastern europe : Bloggers in Romania, hailed by President Terminator

Bloggers in Romania, hailed by President Terminator

Between fierce entrepreneurs, A-listers, history re-writers and new media journalists, bloggers are thriving in Romania. It's hailed by the president, but not well liked by other media stalwarts. The country, one of three ‘partially free’ medias in the EU (alongside Bulgaria and Italy), ranks a poor 50th on the European press freedom index

by Caroline Prosser @ // 13/07/10

central and eastern europe, bucharest, barack obama, censorship, romania, blogs, journalism

Gallery

Image : X-apartments: short plays in people's homes in Warsaw

X-apartments: short plays in people's homes in Warsaw

INVESTIGATION

Melancholy in Berlin: views of three foreign writer residents

Very loosely, a 19-year-old Klaus Mann saw 1920s Berlin as 'seductive, gray, scabby, peeling, yet vibrant vitality, nervous, shimmering, phosphorescent, animated, full of tensions and promises.' Italian, Croatian and French writers Gianluca Falanga, Maksim Cristan and Maia Mazaurette give us their noughties take

by Roberto Lapia @ // 06/07/10

central and eastern europe, labour, economical crisis, germany, berlin, poverty, multiculturalism

DEBATE central and eastern europe : To be or to be in Berlin: poor but (creatively) rich

To be or to be in Berlin: poor but (creatively) rich

Money and the crisis are not on the agenda for Berliners who can focus on different things, such as art. 'Being poor is not cool, but OK,' is the word on the street. It all looks very promising for someone from Bulgaria, the EU's officially poorest country, where a lack of money, unlike cheap glamour, can never be a virtue

by Camelia Ivanova @ // 29/06/10

central and eastern europe, labour, economical crisis, germany, berlin, poverty, berlin-kreuzberg

Vilnius, crisis from beginning to end

Vilnius, crisis from beginning to end

Does crisis come in twos? There's always a definite serving of anger, often directed against 'the others'. It might come in threes too, because apathy is never far behind, which in the darkest of cases can lead to the deliberative loss of one's own life – why does Lithuania have the highest suicide rate in Europe? Less dramatically, it can force the fresher, younger ones to emigrate for brighter horizons. When six pan-European journalists spent a few days under the watchful eye of an Icelandic volcano in Vilnius in April, they encountered these different facets of the economic crisis (Image: ©Pablo Pecora – PnP!/ Flickr)

INTERVIEW central and eastern europe : Cheese People: 'European' face of Russian music

Cheese People: 'European' face of Russian music

From the banks of the River Volga just west of the Urals mountains, which mark the geographical border between Europe and Asia, a funky new band is making a big impact on the Russian music scene: an unsigned, energetic female-fronted quartet with a disco-punk sound. We meet backstage in Moscow

by Natasha Doff @ // 26/05/10

central and eastern europe, post-soviet states, european tour, brunch, culture, youth, music

PORTRAIT central and eastern europe : A brief history: döner kebab, fair ambassador to Turkey?

A brief history: döner kebab, fair ambassador to Turkey?

One of the most popular late night snacks in Europe is the flag bearer of Turkish cuisine outside of Turkey. Is this a source of pride or sorrow for the Turks? Plus, a recipe for green beans in olive oil

by Suna Ekmekcioglu @ // 26/05/10

central and eastern europe, recipe, eat, stamboul, yum nyam, cooking, turkey

Gallery

Image : Gay Pride in Bucharest: counting crows (14 images)

Gay Pride in Bucharest: counting crows (14 images)

Gallery

Image : Shout and ride your 'shitas' out in Vilnius (14 images)

Shout and ride your 'shitas' out in Vilnius (14 images)

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Central and eastern Europe in the babelblogs

If land could move: what would move European countries?

"The Economist" had this funky mental exercise: imagine that countries could be relocated on the map. Don't read the article yet, first look at the map. I'll repost it for you in case the article becomes subscribers-only in the future: Source: Economist

Daiva by Daiva on wonderland

AEGEE celebrates its 25th Anniversary

AEGEE (Association des États Généraux des Étudiants de l’Europe) one of the largest and most famous youth association in Europe is celebrating today its 25th Anniversary! It was founded on 16 April 1985 in Paris by young Europeans striving for the development of European integration and the creation of ...

zoedeyork by zoedeyork on bruxelles

Is Fascism Eastern?

As I have written previously (although, again, without witnessing), the Restoration of Independence Day in Vilnius was scarred by an already traditional neo-nationalist demonstration. After last year's silence, the demonstrators, with a member of the Parliament on their side, oscillated back to noisy calls for a mono-ethnic state. As ...

Daiva by Daiva on wonderland

Not so long ago, a wall separated us

A map of reconciliation Maria-Cristina Necula Writer My father made Europe’s acquaintance while trying to escape its Eastern grasp. As a top microprocessor specialist and associate professor at the Bucharest Polytechnic University, he was allowed an outing beyond the Iron Curtain at a workshop in London in January 1985 ...

Europe à la Carte by Europe à la Carte on europealacarte

Five years: a story without (happy) ending

Five years ago, on 1st May 2004 ten countries – included Hungary – celebrated the day of joining the European Union. Most of the people had big expectations and many of them were sceptics already but they had something in common: lot of questions related to our European future, to our place ...

baluvagyok by baluvagyok on budapest