Fight for control over the Union of Cinematographers of Russia

Nikita Mikhalkov, a charismatic film director and an outspoken Putin loyalist, appears to be winning the fight for control over the Union of Cinematographers of Russia, one of the few remaining influential artistic guilds in Russia. Mikhalkov has been the chairman of the Union since 1997 but was dislodged from his position last December. Under his leadership, a certain rebirth of Russian cinema did indeed take place, but critics point out that most of the profits went to the commercial sector of the Russian cinema industry and to foreign cinema studios.

In December a group of other famous cinema directors elected the 83-year-old Marlen Khutsiyev as the new chairman. Mikhalkov declared the December “gathering” illegitimate and proposed to convene a new congress on March 30, where his supporters are expected to take hold of most of the seats in the Union’s new leadership. Mikhalkov said he would not run for reelection himself.

Read more: Passions Escalate in the Russian Film Milieu as Mikhailkov and Khutsiyev Fight over a Leading Role in the Industry

Czech government falls

The Czech parliament on Tuesday (24 March) by a razor-thin majority voted down the government led by Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, who currently holds the EU presidency.The vote of non-confidence gathered the necessary 101 votes out of 200 to topple the administration, with four votes from the governing party going with the opposition.
The government will have to resign, but the constitution does not provide a deadline by which new elections need to take place, with EU officials expecting some sort of deal with the opposition so that the current cabinet can stay on until the end of the Czech EU presidency, on 30 June.
The centre-right ODS party led by Mr Topolanek along with the opposition Social Democrats are expected to meet President Vaclav Klaus in the coming days to negotiate a solution.According to the Czech constitution, the president is obliged to accept the resignation of the government and consider two possible solutions: early elections or a new government under political consensus of the parliamentary majority.
The current government, formed by the ODS, the Christian-Democrats and the Greens only retained 96 of the 200 deputies in the lower chamber, depending on the good will of independent MPs. Two former ODS members, Vlastimil Tlusty and Jan Schwippel, as well as two other MPs recently expelled from the Green party, Vera Jakubkova and Olga Zubova, voted with the opposition, AFP reports.
In its motivation for the non-confidence vote, Social Democrat leader Jiri Paroubek said the Czech government was "a disgrace" for the EU because it has no clear position on the union and is unable to ratify the Lisbon treaty in the Czech Republic. Mr Paroubek said the Topolanek government is "sticking to its EU presidency as the only possibility to justify its existence" and is "closing its eyes" to the impact of the global economic crisis.Commenting on the vote, Mr Topolanek admitted the collapse of his government could undermine the EU presidency.
"I believe it can complicate our negotiating power ...partners in Europe have grown used to us negotiating hard. In this sense it can happen that our position will be weakened," he told reporters after the vote. He re-iterated that he would be in favour of early elections this summer if no new government is formed.
The EU commission on Tuesday said it maintained "full trust" that the Czech law would allow the country to continue conducting its EU presidency "as effectively as it has done until now."
"It is for the Czech Republic's democratic process under the constitution to resolve the domestic political issues. The commission is confident that this is done in a way which ensures the full functioning of the Council presidency," a commission statement reads.
source: EUobserver

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev to remain in office indefinitely

Azerbaijan’s constitutional referendum featured a Soviet-style result, as election officials claimed that more than nine out of every 10 voters expressed approval for lifting presidential term limits. Overall, the Azerbaijan's Central Elections Commission reported a 71 percent turnout for Wednesday's ballot. Only a 25 percent turnout rate was required for the referendum results to stand. The initiative was proposed in December by the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan (New Azerbaijan) Party, which Aliyev heads. The Azerbaijani constitution limited presidents to two five-year terms.
Opposition members fear that the change could turn Azerbaijan’s presidency into a hereditary position, controlled by the Aliyev family. Already, Azerbaijan has set a precedent for dynastic succession in the former Soviet Union: llham Aliyev was preceded in office by his father, Heidar, who died in 2003 after 10 years as president of Azerbaijan. The elder Aliyev is now portrayed in Azerbaijan as the founding father of the modern Azerbaijani state.

In a March 19 statement, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) noted that the vote was "transparent, well-organized and held in a peaceful atmosphere."At the same time, PACE took issue with the lack of public debate in the run-up to the referendum. The vote was announced in December, but the official campaign lasted only 28 days. Public television allotted just three hours per week to debates about the various constitutional changes.
Source: EurasiaNet.org

EU schrapt subsidie Nabucco-pijpleiding

De Nabucco-pijpleiding is vooralsnog geschrapt van een EU-projectenlijst voor grote Europese subsidies. De beoogde financiering voor de gaspijp werd eerder al verlaagd van 250 tot 200 miljoen euro.
De aanleg van de Nabucco-pijpleiding via Turkije naar de EU i stuit op tegenstand van bijna de helft van de lidstaten, zo bleek dinsdag. Vooral Oost-Europese landen willen zo geld vrijmaken voor energieprojecten binnen hun eigen grenzen. Voornaamste tegenstander Duitsland heeft bezwaar tegen de publieke financiering voor private projecten. Het land zou liever zien dat de controversiële pijplijn tussen Rusland en Duitsland, de 'North Stream' op de lijst met gefinancierde projecten komt.
De aanleg van de Nabucco, die wordt gecoördineerd door de Haagse burgemeester Jozias van Aartsen i, beoogt de EU minder afhankelijk te maken van Russische gasleveranties door import vanuit de Kaspische regio. Azerbeidzjan wordt als grootste leverancier gezien. De pijplijn zou in 2014 in gebruik moeten worden genomen.
Het project stuit op problemen door de aarzeling bij de private geldschieters en door de oorlog tussen Rusland en Georgië in augustus 2008. Een obstakel is ook de concurrerende South Stream, die wordt gesteund door het Russische Gazprom. Verscheidene lidstaten van de EU hebben al getekend voor de South Stream, wat hun belang en betrokkenheid bij Nabucco in twijfel trekt.
De Europese Commissie i verklaarde dat de Nabucco pijplijn nog steeds gefinancierd kan worden onder het aangepaste plan. ,,Het feit dat we de naam hebben veranderd, betekent niet dat het hele project van de baan is'', zei de woordvoerder van de commissie.

Source: Europa NU

Georgië niet naar songfestival in Moskou

Georgië weigert de inzending voor het Eurovisie songfestival aan te passen en zal in mei niet in Moskou op het podium verschijnen.
De organisatoren hadden Georgië opgedragen een ander liedje in te sturen omdat het discoliedje 'We don't wanna put in' te politiek zou zijn. Dit betekent vrij vertaald 'Wij willen geen Poetin' en verwijst naar de vijfdaagse oorlog tussen Rusland en Georgië in augustus.
De Georgiërs hebben daarom besloten zich terug te trekken.

Verkiezingen Macedonië

Op 22 maart vinden in Macedonië nieuwe verkiezingen plaats. De belangrijkste kandidaten zijn:

Georgi Ivanov – VMRO DPMNE [Vnatrešna makedonska revolucionerna organizacija – Demokratska partija za makedonsko nacionalno edinstvo] – een centrum-rechtse partij die zichzelf omschrijft als christen-democratisch en die bovendien voorstander is van de toetreding van Macedonië tot de NATO en Europese Unie.

Ljubomir Danailov Frčkoski [Љубомир Данаилов Фрчкоски] – SDSM [Socijaldemokratski sojuz na Makedonija] – centrum-links; de opvolger van de communistische partij [SKM - Sojuz na Komunistite na Makedonija] die Macedonië geleid heeft van 1945 tot 1990. Frčkoski was achtereenvolgens Minister van Binnenlandse Zaken en Minister van Buitenlandse Zaken.

Imer Selmani [Имер Селмани] – Nova Demokratija - Demokracia e Re – een centrum-rechtse partij van etnisch Albanezen die pas in 2008 opgericht werd na een dispuut met Menduh Thaci, de leider van de Democratische Partij van Albanezen DPA - PDSH [Partia Demokratike Shqiptare]. Selmani was voor geruime tijd Minister van Gezondheid.

Agron Buxhaku – BDI [Bashkimi Demokratik për Integrim; Mac.: DUI [Demokratska unija za integracija] – de grootste Albanese partij in Macedonië. De partij is na de oorlog in 2001 opgericht uit een samensmelting van het Nationaal Bevrijdingsleger (UÇK) en de Macedonische Veiligheidstroepen. Buxhaku was tot 2005 Minister van Transport.

Nano Ružin [Нано Ружин] – LDP [Liberalno-Demokratska Partija]. Liberaal-Democratische Partij die in 1997 ontstaan is uit een samensmelting van de Liberale en de Democratische Partij. Ružin was jarenlang ambassadeur bij de NAVO.

Ljube Boškoksi [Љубе Бошкоски] – De voormalige Minister van Binnenlandse Zaken treedt op als onafhankelijke presidentskandidaat. Boškoksi wordt beschuldigd van oorlogsmisdaden, maar blijft populair bij de Macedoniërs.

Mirushe Hoxha [Hodza] – PDSH [Partia Demokratike Shqiptare] ook wel DPA [Demokratska Partija na Albancite] genoemd. Hoxha is momenteel professor ‘Feministische letterkunde’ aan de universiteit van Skopje.