96/2019 • 27 APRIL, 2019 WEEKEND ISSUE
DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
One in ten EU voters support farright populist parties When Europeans head to the polls next month to elect a new parliament, most will vote based on who they oppose rather than who they support, according to a new study. Extremist, populist parties stand to benefit. Around 10% of voters plan to use their vote in the European Parliament electionsto back far-right or rightwing populist parties, according to astudypublished by the Bertelsmann Foundation on Friday. Most other EU citizens will use their ballots to thwart parties they oppose rather than support a particular group.
Germany speeds up asylum process German authorities took a little over six months on an average to process asylum requests in the third quarter of 2018, according to an Interior Ministry response to a parliamentary question by the Left party. The average processing time was 9.2 months in the first quarter and 7.3 months in the second quarter, newspapers of the Funke Medien‐ gruppe quoted. In 2017, the asylum seekers had to wait an average of 10.7 months for a decision. The time that the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) officials needed to process asylum requests in the third quarter is still way below the target of three months that Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed with state premiers in 2015. "Instead of the costly and mostly ineffective process of questioning the protection status that has already been granted, as is currently happening hundreds of thousands of times in the context of the revocation investigations, the BAMF staff should be deployed to examine the asylum applications and gain better qualifications," Left Party domestic policy expert Ulla Jelpke told Funke newspapers. This could effectively shorten the length of procedures "without compromising the quality of the procedures," she said.
Franceʼs Emmanuel Macron faces bumpy road to reform The French president has bowed to yellow vest protesters with tax cuts and administrative reform
Heʼs hoping for a new start — but his fight for the hearts and minds of the people is far from over, writes Barbara Wesel.
Germanyʼs migrants: wooed and discriminated "We are Hamburg. Are you in?" Thatʼs the slogan Hamburg is using to advertise municipal jobs to migrants. From police officers to teachers, doctors, bookkeepers and prison workers — the city is hoping to hire more employees with an migrant background. And itʼs not just Hamburg making this push. All throughout Germany, the business and public sectors alike are focusing on the countryʼs newest residents. Rising education levels
Thatʼs because the average education level of migrants in Germany is on the rise. In 2011, one-quarter of young migrants between the ages of 18 and 25 had completed their "Abitur," or high school certificate exam. By 2015, that figure had climbed to 33 percent. During that same period, the percentage of youth without a migrant background who completed high school rose from 32 to 39 percent.
Tour de Yorkshire: Mark Cavendish to compete in 2019 edition Britainʼs Mark Cavendish will race in the 2019 Tour de Yorkshire, which begins in Doncaster on Thursday, as he continues his return from illness. Last month, Cavendish, 33, withdrew from Paris-Nice and then missed Milan-San Remo, two months after he had returned to cycling after being laid low by the Epstein Barr Virus. "Iʼm really excited," said Cavendish. "I really enjoyed the tough but beautiful parcours [route] last year as I rode the race for the first time." The Manx rider added: "I look forward to seeing whatʼs in store for us in the 2019 edi-
tion. "Over and above the racing though, it always blows my mind to see the incredible support of the fans. With some of my family in Yorkshire, it makes it so special and I canʼt wait to see them all again." He will be joined in Yorkshire by Dimension Data team-mates Nic Dlamini, Bernhard Eisel, Mark Renshaw, Tom-Jelte Slagter and Rasmus Tiller. Cavendish - who has won 30 Tour de France stages - made his Tour de Yorkshire debut in 2018. Four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome and Marcel Kittel will also compete this year.
Sri Lanka says militant leader killed in Easter bombings Security forces in Sri Lanka are looking for around 140 people believed to have links with the "Islamic State" (IS) militia over the Easter attacks, President Maithripala Sirisena said on Friday. In the days following the church and hotel blasts, the government saidlocal militants from the National Thowfeek Jamaath (NTJ) were behind the bombings, likely with help from abroad. Later, a video surfaced with the NTJ leader pledging his allegiance to IS. The attacks launched a nationwide manhunt for Hashim. On Friday, President Sirisena said the NTJ leader died in one of the six deadly blast while taking part in the attack on the luxury Shangri-la hotel in the capital, Colombo.
Chinaʼs Belt and Road is ʼgreen and clean,ʼ says Xi Chinese President Xi Jinping says the Belt and Road program must be "open, green and clean." Beijing wants to dispel fears that its infrastructure plans will leave countries saddled with debt and environmental damage. Chinaʼs Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) will have "zero tolerance for corruption" and bring "high-quality" growth to all countries involved, Chinese President Xi Jinping said Friday. He was speaking in Beijing at the start a summit on his grand plans to rebuild the old Silk Road and connect China with Asia, Africa and parts of Europe.
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96/2019 • 27 April, 2019 Weekend issue
Donʼt expose babies to electronic screens, says WHO Children under 12 months old should not be exposed to electronic screens at all, according to the World Health Organization. Parents were urged to ensure kids get enough exercise to encourage good habits later in life. Infants less than a year old should not be exposed to electronic screens, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday. Issuing its first such guidelines, the United Nations health agency said that older children, aged two to four, should be limited to one hour per day sedentary screen time. The guidelines also covered sleep and exercise. Among the findings were that: Infants under one should interact in floor-based play — or "tummy time" — for at least an hour each day and avoid all screens.Children between one and four should spend at least three hours in a variety of physical activities spread across the day, with no more than an hour of screen time.Children shouldn’t be restrained in a pram or high chair, or strapped to someoneʼs back, for more than an hour at a time. The WHO said under-fives should be physically active and getting plenty of sleep, under-fives would establish healthy habits through adolescence and into adulthood.
Simona Halep through to semis Simona Halep moved closer to reclaiming the world number one ranking after defeating Chinaʼs Wang Qiang 6-4 7-5 to reach the Miami Open semi-finals.
Halep only needs to reach Saturdayʼs final to knock Japanʼs Naomi Osaka off the top womenʼs rankings. The 27-year-old from Romania was 5-1 down in the second set but fought back by winning six consecutive games. "My coach said I was rushing a bit so I managed to calm down," she said. "That was great advice. I started well and played some smart tennis but in the second set, she
started to raise her game." Halep converted seven of eight break points and hit 24 winners compared to 14 from Wang. She will play the winner of an all-Czech contest between world number five Karolina Pliskova and Marketa Vondrousova in the next round. The other semi-final will be played between Anett Kontaveit of Estonia and Australiaʼs Ashleigh Barty.
8 record-breaking books for World Book Day For UNESCOʼs World Book Day on April 23, we take a look at some quirky and impressive literary achievements. Nowadays, books are increasingly read on screens rather than paper. But for centuries, they have not only served as a means of communication, but have also been status symbols, works of art and collector items. To promote the written word, UNESCO
initiated World Book Day in 1995. Its date, April 23, goes back to a Spanish tradition. On the name day of Saint George, roses and books are given as presents in Catalonia. April 23 is also the day William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes, two of the most significant writers in the world,passed away. To celebrate World Book Day, click though the gallery above for some astonishing record-breaking books.
Two Germans win second gold medals at Nordic World Ski Championships Germanyʼs Markus Eisenbichler on Sunday helped destroy the opposition to win gold in the large hill skijumping team event — his second world title at this yearʼs FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Seefeld, Austria. Eisenbichler and his compatriots Karl Geiger, Richard Freitag, and Stephan Leyhe led from start to finish on Innsbruckʼs Bergisel hill, winning 987.5 points overall, a massive 56.5 points — or 31 meters (101 feet) — ahead of hosts Austria, who took silver, and Japan (bronze).
Budapestʼs historic Lotz Hall café reopened as Café Párisi After two years of undesired silence a new café has opened its gates in Budapest’s neo-renaissance styled jewellery box, the former Paris Deparment Store (Párisi Nagy Áruház). Situated in the heart of the city on Andrássy avenue, Café Párisi is the perfect location for those who wish to enjoy the luxury of early 20th century Budapest.
H-1056 Budapest, Só u. 6. Telephone: +36 1 577 0700 Fax: +36 1 577 0710 bhzinfo@zeinahotels.com www.boutiquehotelbudapest.com
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Explore the diversity of German beer Think German beer and you might think of lager and the "Purity Law," which was enacted 503 years ago on April 23, 1516. But thereʼs a lot more to German brew than barley, hops and water! The beers Andre Gifkens and Robyn Anderson of Berlin selected for their specialty store Lager Lager cover a wide range of styles, strengths and flavors. Not all of them conform to the Purity Law, which is why the word "beer" is missing from some labels. Some of them are produced by big companies; others are craft beers brewed by entrepreneurs without corporate backing. All of them are delicious. We start on the tangy, lowalcohol, refreshing side. Weisse is a wheat beer dating from the 17th century and often drunk with fruit syrup. What gives the drink in its pure form a characteristic sourness is the addition of the bacteria lactobacillus. Friedrich the Great of Prussia learned how to brew it, and Napoleon allegedly dubbed it the "champagne of the North."
UK reveals fighter jet ʼTempestʼ for post-Brexit era Williamson said the "worldbeating" jet can be used unmanned, as a drone, or with pilots. It is scheduled to be operational by 2035. The UK is to invest 2 billion pounds ($2.7 billion, €2.3 billion) to 2025 in the stealth warplane, which will involve British companies BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce as well as Anglo-Italian Leonardo and panEuropean MBDA. Aiming to ensure UK leadership in defense Williamson said the program was designed to ensure Britainʼs continued leadership in fighter technology and control of airspace in future conflicts. Last year,France and Germany signed an agreementto develop Europeʼs next-generation fighter jet to replace the aging Rafale and Eurofighter jet by 2040, involving Europeʼs Airbus and Franceʼs Dassault Aviation. Following the 2016 Brexit referendum, Airbus moved to partner with Dassault at the expense of Britainʼs BAE Systems. There are concerns in Britain that its defense industry may be shut out from EU plans for next-generation fighter jets, although, officially, both projects have invited other companies to join.