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Biodun@bbcnews.com

Wednesday, 29 December 2010

Le Monde diplomatique--by Biodun Iginla, BBC News
Topic: le monde, bbc news, biodun iginl

29 December 2010

January 2011

...North Korea, feared and fearful; why Haiti can't move on; WikiLeaks, shoot the messenger; Burundi andRwanda, elections don't help; Israel, the next war? Saudi Arabia's new friend China; inside China, farm to city;Italy's rising star; Facebook, spying on us all; politics ofsweet celebrity...and more...

Read the summary online

Not quite the whole truth - Serge Halimi
The world narrowly escaped nuclear war in October 1962. In the run-up to the mid-term elections, President Kennedy repeatedly asserted that Soviet offensive missiles would not be deployed in Cuba and would not be tolerated if they were. Moscow did not respond, not knowing whether these statements were merely intended to pander to voters or were a genuine warning. Secret exchanges subsequently made the parties' intentions clear and they were able to defuse the crisis.The Americans let it be (...)
Translated by Barbara Wilson
Wikileaks: journalism or espionage?
Shoot the messenger - Philippe Rivière
In setting up WikiLeaks, Julian Assange wanted to bring to light secret agreements between countries. That he succeeded is clear from the number of companies and governments who have tried to shut him down
Translated by George Miller
Will there be a strike? and if so, where?
Israel: the next war - Alain Gresh
The US's failure under Barack Obama to impose peace between Israel and the Palestinians makes a new war likely
Translated by Barbara Wilson
Memories of famine, creeping takeover by China
North Korea, fortress state* - Philippe Pons
Pyongyang's decision to shell a small South Korean island at the end of November ramped up tension in an attempt to restart talks with the US. North Korea is feeling the effects of isolation and sanctions, socio-economic change that the regime cannot fully control, and growing dependence on China
Translated by George Miller
Stranger than fiction* - Philippe Pons
Translated by George Miller
Earthquake shook everything but the system
Haiti in the hands of the NGOs - Christophe Wargny
One year on from the earthquake that devastated Haiti, it may still take a decade just to clear the rubble if work continues at its present pace. Meanwhile the poor suffer, the rich profit, and the show is run by NGOs and other outsiders
Translated by Robert Waterhouse
Haiti's disastrous election* - Alexander Main
The voters weren't registered, or in the right places, and were fearful of cholera. The organisers were anything but impartial. And Haitians are angry
Original text in English
Divisions go beyond ethnic lines
Rwanda and Burundi, false twins* - Colette Braeckman
Last year's elections in Rwanda and Burundi suggested democratic progress after histories of genocide and civil war. But authoritarian rule continues in both countries, and is causing problems that could destabilise the region
Translated by Stephanie Irvine
Burundi's blemished election* - Vincent Munié
The world, represented in Burundi by an EU observer mission, deliberately ignored irregularities in last year's many elections. It doesn't like the results - re-election of the sole remaining presidential candidate, one-party rule - but it did nothing to prevent them
Translated by Stephanie Irvine
Oil lubricates trade and mutual influence
China and Saudi Arabia: just good friends* - Alain Gresh
Saudi Arabia has never forgotten that China stood by it when it was threatened during the Iran-Iraq war. That, and the Saudi desire to ensure future sales of oil, and the Chinese need for supplies, is the basis for fast-growing trade and other links
Translated by Stephanie Irvine
Hajj diplomacy* - Alain Gresh
Translated by Stephanie Irvine
Village girl to prospering property dealer
The migrant's long march - Behzad Yaghmaian
This is the story of just one of China's current farm-to-city migrants, the story of a young woman who has, so far, survived boom, bust and near-exploitation to make herself a life that will be far better than that of her parents, and yet also keep those parents happy
LMD English edition exclusive
Messiahs come to redeem, not to govern
Household gods* - Lewis Lapham
The founding fathers of the US set up a system that could be run by ordinary citizens, paying serious attention to the job. That's not the way it works now though, when politics is just another form of the religion of celebrity - of being, not doing
LMD English edition exclusive
Mezzogiorno: mafia and a rising star
Italy's blood oranges* - Christophe Ventura
Riots by migrant agricultural workers in southern Italy last year weren't just the result of racism. They were partly caused by the Calabrian mafia's grip on citrus growing in the region
Translated by Charles Goulden
Nichi Vendola, the Italian Obama - Chase Madar
He's one of the country's most popular politicians, net and social-networking confident, adored by the young and might lead a leftish coalition in the next general election. And he tries to keep a belief in politics alive
LMD English language exclusive
Cosy cocoon or spider's web?
Facebook: the magic mirror - Philippe Rivière
Translated by Charles Goulden

Diplomatic channels

ARTICLES & BLOG

France's wars over women (2010/12)
How Iranians dodge sanctions (2010/12)
Britain goes French: the student occupations(2010/12)

MAPS

The EU's expulsion machine (2010/06)
Reunion, integrated island (2010/03)
Live long if you're prosperous (2010/02)

PODCASTS

Vicken Cheterian on the dangers of Kyrgyzstan's continuing chaos (2010/09)
Chase Madar on the violation of the laws of war (2010/08)
Eyal Weizman on Tel Aviv's onslaught on the NGOs (2010/07)

IMAGES

Reimagining Raqqa: of tradition and of wheat(2010/10)
Black Dust (2010/09)
Afghanistan's own national army (2010/08)

OPEN PAGE

Iceberg Economies and Shadow Selves(2010/12)
Everything is negotiable, except with nature (2010/12)
One November's Dead(2010/12)

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