WELCOME ISSUE 20/3/2014 | Strakonice
EDITORIAL Gentle reader, You are holding in your hands the first original work of The Wire Media Team. The first thing that might pop into your head is whether “The Wire” constitutes a reference to the famous HBO series, which vividly depicts the dirt of Baltimore, Maryland. Well... it does not. What does it represent then? We would like to wire everyone up by documenting every event occurring at the session, turning the whole 120-people body into a functioning electrical network. Let us all get wired and let those electrons move it – the only remaining variable is the shape of the light bulb we will eventually light up. Yours, Klára & Marek
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WELCOME TO SAINT-TROPEZ STRAKONICE
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POWER TO THE PARLIAMENT The 2014 European elections are the first ones to be held in the aftermath of the Lisbon Treaty coming into force in 2009, and the first task of the incoming Parliament will be to elect the next President of the European Commission to succeed José Manuel Barroso. This means voters now can indirectly determine who takes over at the helm of the EU government, which is considered a major step in the development of democratic legitimacy in the European Union. What other measures can be taken in order to further empower the European Parliament and fill the democratic deficit? According to many, it doesn’t take thorough examination to see that the EU suffers from a chronic democratic deficit, which leaves no European institution unaffected. On the contrary, others say that such a diagnosis is extreme, and the symptoms of this condition are purely made up by eurosceptics. However, the truth lies somewhere in the middle, and everyone can agree the EU is anything but “just fine”, as too many European citizens are known to show little to no interest in affairs that fall under its competences – only 43% of the EU citizens voted in the last elections. It is therefore clear that the EU is due to undergo open surgery to remove the democratic deficit. That constitutes the only way to establish a healthy relationship with its citizens. But how bad is the EU actually hurting? one may ask. After all, the EU citizens still directly elect their national Members of Parliament, and starting from the upcoming elections, this also means indirectly electing the president of the European Commission. The incoming Parliament will make sure their rights are respected as stated in the Charter of Fundamental Rights embedded in the Lisbon Treaty and support their new right of citizens’ initiative, which will allow people to bring forward to the European
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Commission an initiative of interest to them if supported by 1 million signatures. Moreover, it will guarantee the national parliaments’ right to object to European legislative measures by invoking the principle of subsidiarity (that is, if they consider the matter in discussion better dealt with at a national level). So far it seems like this empowered Parliament will definitely give a stronger voice to the 500 million citizens it represents, but the question still remains: will they let their voice be heard? The European Parliament is still less than a full legislature, as it can only pass, amend or reject the Commission’s legislation, not initiate it, and many issues that voters care about (i.e education) are still only to be dealt with by the national parliaments. What is more, the habit of some national politicians blaming the EU when things go wrong in their country, and taking credit when the situation gets better will continue to feed mistrust amongst EU citizens. This series of events will make them feel disempowered, accentuating the democratic deficit. In this context, there is no denying that further measures that would strengthen the role of the EP should be considered.
EUROZONE – RECOVERY KIT AND INNOVATIVE IDEAS NEEDED! The Eurozone has faced many tough challenges during the past few years. Nobody wants to see „another Greece“ happening, and therefore the European Union (EU) did not have any other choice but to start making changes. The question is – are those changes enough?
In 1999 The Stability and Growth Pact was established to prevent any further critical situations and also to fix and improve the excessive deficits. After the financial crisis it was clear that new measures are desperately needed. The 2011 framework „SixPack“ was designed for monitoring the national budgets, but it has also been criticised – many do not see it as a solution that would help Eurozone to thoroughly recover. In 2012 The European Stability Mechanism (ESM) was introduced, replacing the two previous programmes, but it was also attacked by some Member States, which claimed that it strongly limits their economic sovereignty.
Macroeconomic Imbalance Procedure (MIP) has already ensured that the Member States are looked at individually, making recommendations specific, but is the MIP enough to ensure successful problem-solving?
The concern of those Member States that have not yet joined the Eurozone is that they are not economically strong, which puts them at risk of becoming another Greece. Although, taking into consideration the existing measures, the EU has a strong potential to keep a sharp eye on the joining countries. On the other hand – the measures in place do not solve the problem of the current Eurozone Member States that are slowly stepping into As we can see, the EU has tried to take measures towards a more Greece’s footprints. stable Eurozone, but no solution has convinced the Member States to start breathing more easily. It is clear that the EU Mem- After all the efforts the EU has put in, it is still not clear today ber States are bound to join the Eurozone sooner or later (with where the Eurozone stands. Time can only tell what the future the exception of Denmark and the United Kingdom), but there is holds for the newest member of the Eurozone club, Latvia, but no guarantee that this kind of move would be beneficial for the it is for sure that without supervision and effective actions, the Eurozone might not be able to recover, and stronger integration nation state or the currency itself. in Europe can only remain a dream. It is understandable that all countries are different, and therefore one solution for all of them may not be the best approach. The
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FRIGHTENING “ESPERANZAS” stores. Everybody is really amazed by his work, and he becomes known all over the world. Everybody is listening to his acoustic masterpieces in Spanish, and even those who are not able to understand the lyrics properly took on the role of Cristóbal and his desperate situation. Despite this enormous success, the total amount of records sold all over the world is 9. The incomes are not the best either – it is not even enough to pay for the recording costs. Cristóbal is forced to get back to his previous work. With a At the age of 6, his father took him to listen to performance of low salary, he and his family are fighting to survive in the streets Paco de Lucía, and he knew almost immediately that guitar will of Mexico City. be the love of his life. Although his family was poor, he started attending a guitar school. At the age of 8, he composed his first Cristóbal’s case tells us a story on how violations of copyright song called “Ya No Volverá”. And here we go today. His father is in may affect artists, and shows that piracy is such an easy thing to a hospital, and his mother is taking care of three boys. They des- do nowadays. People often neglect the impact of piracy on artperately need money for his father’s surgery – the biggest hope ists; however, it can play an enormous role in their lives. is put into Cristóbal’s guitar. After several hours, the LP is ready to be released, leaving Cristóbal in a cloud of expectations. He had to pay 3,500 pesos, an amount similar to 200 euros. As time goes on, Cristóbal’s LP called “Esperanzas” is being sold in music It is a lovely sunny day in Mexico City. The hour hand is pointing at 2pm, and for the Esposito family it is the “D” day. Cristóbal, the oldest son of three, who currently works as an auto mechanic, records an LP in a recording studio. His talent is very well known all over Mexico, and despite his fast hands he has never been heard of in any other country. He managed to get attention with his precision, determination, passion, and spirit whilst playing.
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THE ROMA QUESTION An ethnic group who have been migrating for close to a thousand years to all corners of the world, half a million of them falling victims to the Holocaust, misrepresented, often resented, pejoratively known as gypsies, the close 12 million Roma have undergone tremendous hardships, and very little is known about their way of life. Who are they today?
For decades, the Romani people have been amongst the poorest France attempted in 2010, financially supporting those who left of communities, most lacking proper education and struggling the country, however successful, can’t be the proper way to handle such a delicate social problem. to find work. At a time where we proudly boast with having brought racism to its knees, there is still despicable stereotyping to be seen at an immense scale – racism at its best targeted at Europe’s largest ethnic minority, a class of people with incredibly diverse cultural and historical background. However, isn’t it possible that there is legitimate reason behind it? Is today the struggle perhaps rather unwillingness, due to which so many become entrapped in poverty? Perhaps we are prohibited from asking such questions, one might wonder.
Yes, there are two sides to every story. In this case, the shady third might be that the Roma are a nomadic people and urbanisation simply poses a historical difficulty for them, but society mustn’t stay in the way with atrocious pre-emptive judgement. A Roma woman living in the United Kingdom said that she had left Romania because the amount of discrimination that her sons had felt at school, based on them having a “gypsy” mother, was unbearable.
It is indeed an alarming issue and has been for some time alIf country by country can’t seem to get a grip on the integration ready. It is as pressing as it is complex, and bending public opinof Romani people in order to let them flourish, how effective ion is only the tip of the iceberg. do their plans have to be? Conceivably, some criticism may be directed at the demographic rather than at those attempting to help it, but sending a whole people to their land of origin as
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GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT! Dear delegates, dear experts on foreign affairs! You have a very difficult task ahead of you. You are going to shape the political stance of the European Union towards the situation in Ukraine. Why is it so difficult? The country is changing rapidly, and too many stakeholders are involved. Careful consideration of the reliability of all information is crucial, and quick judgment is unacceptable. Facts are what you need. Let the following timeline become your compass in the sea of ambiguous information about Ukrainian crisis. Safe sailing and fair winds! 21 Nov: President Yanukovych officially suspends the signature of The EU Association Agreement (AA) and a free trade agreement. 22 Nov: Pro-EU anti-government protests erupt in Ukraine. The term “Euromaidan” is coined (Maidan = the main city square in Ukrainian) 1 Dec: The City Hall is seized by activists. 17 Dec: Russian President Vladimir Putin announces plans to buy $15 billion in Ukrainian government bonds and to cut the cost of Russia’s natural gas for Ukraine. 22 Jan: Three protesters die after being hit with live ammunition. 28 Jan: Mykola Azarov resigns as Ukraine’s prime minister. 18 Feb: More street clashes leave at least 18 dead and around a hundred injured. Protesters take hold of the government buildings. 20 Feb: Over 70 deaths a result of sniper shooting from the roofs around Maidan. 21 Feb: Protest leaders, the political opposition, and Yanukovych agree to form a new government and hold early elections. The parliament votes to free Yulia Tymoshenko, the former prime minister, from prison. Yanukovych flees Kiev after 8 | WIRE | issue 1
protesters took control of the capital. 22 Feb: The new government votes to remove Yanukovych. 25 May is set the date of presidential elections. 23 Feb: Oleksandr Turchynov, the former speaker of the parliament, gains presidential power. Pro-Russian protesters rally in Crimea against the new Kiev administration. 24 Feb: Ukraine’s interim government draws up a warrant for Yanukovych’s arrest. 27 Feb: Pro-Kremlin armed men seize government buildings in Crimea. Yanukovych is granted refuge in Russia. 1 March: As situation worsens in Crimea, local leaders ask for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s help. Russian parliament’s upper house approves a request by Putin to use military power in Ukraine. 5 March: OSCE sends 35 unarmed military personnel to Ukraine for “providing an objective assessment of facts on the ground.” 6 March: Crimea’s parliament votes unanimously in favour of joining Russia. The decision is to be put on referendum on 16 March. 16 March: Crimea and Sevastopol vote in the referendum. 97% of the Crimean inhabitants vote for joining Russia.
AIR POLLUTION: THE INSIDIOUS PLAGUE OF THE 21ST CENTURY The human toll for poor air quality is worse than for road traffic accidents, making it the number one environmental cause of premature death in the European Union. So far many Member States have been failing to enforce existing EU air quality standards, even though the rules are less rigorous than those set by the World Health Organization. How can the new Clean Air Policy Package be implemented in the most effective way in order to achieve the desired level of air quality? Air pollution is a local, pan-European and worldwide issue. Air pollutants released in one country may be transported in the atmosphere, contributing to or resulting in poor air quality elsewhere.
or programme to ensure compliance with the limit value before the date when the limit value formally enters into force. In addition, information on air quality should be disseminated to the public.
Poor air quality is the number one environmental cause of premature death in the European Union since it is directly linked with lung diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. The World Health Organisation states that 2.4 million people die each year from causes directly attributable to air pollution. Unfortunately, children, the elderly, and citizens suffering from asthma and respiratory conditions are most affected. As well as negative effects on health, air pollution has considerable economic impacts, cutting short lives, increasing medical costs, and reducing productivity through lost working days. Air pollution also has impacts on the environment, affecting the quality of fresh water, soil, and ecosystems.
While the EU air quality policy brought significant reductions in concentrations of harmful pollutants, major problems still remain. Many EU Member States have still not implemented EU’s air quality standards, and the air pollution guidelines of the UN World Health Organization are generally not being met. EU air quality standards and targets are breached in many regions and cities, and public health suffers accordingly, with rising costs to health care and the economy. The total external health-related costs to society from air pollution are estimated to be in the range of ₏330-940 billion per year.
European legislation on air quality is built on certain principles. The first of these is that the Member States divide their territory into a number of zones and agglomerations. In these zones and agglomerations, the Member States should undertake assessments of air pollution levels using measurements, modelling, and other empirical techniques. Where there are elevated levels reported, the Member States should prepare an air quality plan
In general, the situation is more severe in urban areas, which are now home to a majority of Europeans. Poor coordination between national and local action and lack of capacity at the regional and local level have made compliance even more difficult and costly. That being said, air pollution appears to be a serious plague, which shall be healed before human race appears unable to restore the serious damage.
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ERASMUS+: A NEW OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUNG EUROPEANS The new European Union framework programme for education, training, youth, and sport, called Erasmus+, was recently launched. It replaced the very successful Erasmus and other education projects. One of the main aims of the project is to increase the mobility of students. Due to the fact that the schools curricula among the member states of the European Union are not unified, what steps, if any, should be taken to solve this problem?
The Erasmus programme, a part of the Lifelong Learning Programme 2007–2013, was the most popular student exchange programme in Europe ever. Thousands of universities and post-secondary educational institutions allowed more than 3 million students to go through the Erasmus programme during the seven-year period and experience life in different countries, making the participants more prepared for the adult life and attractive to potential employers. As promised, the European Union is spending more money on the educational sector. After a huge success with the Erasmus programme, the new Erasmus+ is being launched, having a budget more than 40% bigger compared to the Erasmus. It replaces popular programmes, such as Leonardo, Comenius, Grundtvig, Youth in Action, and the already mentioned Erasmus. Over four million people, most under the age of 25, will receive Erasmus+ grants to study, work, train, or volunteer abroad. The programme is focused on education, training, youth, and sport.
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Regarding students at university or post-secondary educational institutions, there will not be any dramatic changes when comparing the Erasmus and the Erasmus+ programmes. Students can study abroad from 3 to 12 months. They will be exempted from paying registration, tuition and examinations fees. Erasmus+ students are also eligible to apply and have their travel and subsistence costs covered by the programme. For the next seven years, The Erasmus+ programme will be here for students, teachers, volunteers, educational institutions, and many others. It will offer them an opportunity of a lifetime to further develop and educate themselves. Therefore, everybody should make use the situation and make the most of it. After all, it is our life and our future we are talking about.
HELP THE BACKGROUND, WIN THE FOREGROUND The Syrian civil war, within the three years of its existence, has made it to many top news stories, and the outside world has lost the interest in the daily bloody battles almost completely. In the vast number of documented stories it is hard to find one that has a deeper message than others.
more meaningful for Asad to kill one doctor instead of a thousand fighters. Taking into consideration that 40% of the hospitals have been destroyed and 20% are reported to be out of business, the humanitarian status of the country is almost on the worst possible level. Drastic shots of improvised overcrowded clinics full of wretched children, women, and men, overworked doctors without adequate resources and staff only illustrate the urgency Reporters of an independent documentary station VICE mediate of the situation which emerged. uncensored videos from the battlefield and recorded the very last interviews with the opposition fighters. They enter battles with No less attention should be paid to refugee camps, including Kalashnikovs and home-made weapons against Asad’s trained the largest one, Zataar in Jordan, which is currently providing a military units, his tanks, and air force. While the battle results may shelter for twice more expatriates than its original capacity. Peoappear one-sided, the UN has registered 27 cases of mass mur- ple fleeing from the horrors of war often try to cross Jordanian der during the civil war, out of which ten are attributed to rebel border to escape; however, as Amnesty International reports, the groups. Every war offers chances for radicals and terrorists to get “entrance” to the country is often impossible, especially without involved, not excluding this one. According to BBC, the opposi- valid identification. From the camp itself, different life stories restion army is now supported by several such groups, including the onate. We meet people full of nihilism, ideologically filled young men, but especially lots of orphans who have gotten into the infamous Al-Qaeda. camps without their parents. And even these stories are full of The Syrian status has been described the worst humanitarian grief and unheard lamentation of Syrian inhabitants, who are still crisis of the 21st century – a fact unequivocally proven by the waiting for the moment when they can be proud of their country testimonies of doctors in the area. Irrespective of their origin or once again. specialisation, the government forces have them identified and engage against them frequently. As one of the doctors says, it is Syrian citizens are slowly losing their hopes of solving the situation, which is getting worse and worse. An important milestone was the use of chemical weapons that is attributed to government forces. People enter the rebel groups to express their frustration while the world powers keep showing little to no interest in the atrocities committed in this country in the Middle East.
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OFFICIALS’ INTRODUCTIONS
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committee
name
What would you like God to say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?
What inspires you?
What character resembles you the most?
AFCO
Tim Backhaus
Welcome!
sea
Harvey Specter (Suits)
Dirk Hofland
See you next time!
ironing
Frank Underwood (House of Cards)
Ilinca Bogaciov
I was expecting you.
deadlines
Bel Rowley (The Hour)
Henok Gheber
he would send me back because I haven't finished my business on Earth
people, especially EYP people
Odysseus, he relied on his wit only
Petr Procházka
Are you sure you deserve it?
the guy who travelled across Africa and South America in a trabant; I love unordinary traveling
Jean Valjean (Les Misérables)
Jana Slesarenko
Woah, woah, go back, you're not done there.
doctors
Wall-E
nothing cause I'm the God
white blank paper
Pippi Longstocking Einstein
Chairs Journalist AFET I Chairs
Journalist AFET II
Anna Clara Örtendahl
Chairs
Anna Hagarová
It was a joke, did no one tell you?
passion
Journalist
Štěpán Kment
GG WP
experiences
CULT
Erblin Hoxha
You did good.
kindergarten children
Chairs
Zuzana Holakovská
It's gonna end soon.
people (EYPers)
Willem Koelewijn
Journalist
Michal Novotný
Not yet, go back.
optimistic people
Bilbo Baggins (Lord of the Rings)
ECON
Willem Koelewijn
Mr Koelewijn, you're here for the presidential suite, correct?
full English breakfast
Neville Longbottom
Kateřina Tlachová
Do you want white or red wine?
art, I used to be a painter Simba (The Lion King)
Journalist
Triin Kaup
Are you sure you're at the right place?
Articles from The Economist, I then realise how little I know and it pushes me to learn more
Khaleesi (Game of Thrones)
ENVI
Alastair Payne
What? Did you forget your keys?
fear of failure
Mark Corrigan (Peep Show)
Václav Huk
I've been expecting you for quite long.
challenges
Jaime Lannister (Game of Thrones)
Journalist
Rea Dika
I told you, honey, it's over.
our Editors
Tinkerbell (Peter Pan)
JURI
Valeryia Boyko
Wow?
wholeness
Bernadette Black (Black Books)
Andreia-Gemma Moraru
Welcome!
evolution
Rachel Green (Friends)
Journalist
Martin Stoček
Beer?
chill out music
Mikael Blomkvist (Millennium)
LIBE
Maria Köpping
Stay on Earth a little longer.
people I meet
Max (Two Broke Girls)
Chairs
Milana Yandieva
Finally!
Gregor Bauer
Helga (Hey Arnold)
Journalist
Gregor Bauer
Briefing in a minute, take a look around.
pressure or epiphany
Larry David
Chairs
Chairs
Chairs
Pontmercy, Les Misérables Frank Underwood (House of Cards)
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Editor
Marek Navrátil
So we meet again!
equations
David Attenborough
Editress
Klára Scholleová
Prepare for the restart.
playing organ
Daria
VideoEditor
Jeroen De Marteau
Welcome, I quit, you can take over.
the internet
Doctor Watson (Sherlock)
HO
Lenka Vysoká
You're welcome here.
books, interesting people, quotations
Máša
HO
Kateřina Žejdlová
You had a beautiful life.
nature, art, music
Clara (Doctor Who)
Organiser
Thi Anh Tuyet
Welcome to Heaven!
EYP
Winnie-the-Pooh
Organiser
Aneta Fortelková
Smile at me, my daughter.
pencil
Winnie-the-Pooh
Organiser
Marek Haisl
Welcome!
EYP
Harvey Specter (Suits)
Organiser
Michal Koláček
You're awesome, come in.
The Sun
Ernest
Organiser
Tereza Tupá
You should go back.
My friends
Kleopatra
Organiser
Jana Soukupová
Respect.
roasted children
Hermione Granger
Organiser
Pavel Mládek
Haha! Got ya!
stuff I hate, I want to make it better
Arnold Judas Rimmer (The Red Dwarf)
Organiser
Filip Volf
No nazdar!
Pythagorean theorem
John Rambo
Organiser
Klára Chvostová
Only mormons here, you're going to hell.
Gordon Ramsay
Amy Farrah Fowler (The Big Bang Theory)
when I notice something in people I've never noticed before
Odysseus, curiosity kept him away from home for years, but in the end he knows where he belongs.
President
Lorenzo Parrulli
Waddup?
SPECIAL PRIZE TO ANYONE WHO LEARNS ALL OFFICIALS’ NAMES BY THE END OF THE SESSION. PLEASE REPORT TO ANY MEDIA TEAM MEMBER.
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ELECTIONS THAT MATTER On 23 and 24 May Czechs will elect their Members of the European Parliament. 21 seats are to be taken. These are the eighth European elections in general and the third for the citizens of the Czech Republic. Some might think – nothing special, a usual circulation of the staff, right? Not really. This year’s elections are special. Firstly because the European Parliament has far more power than ever before. It is the Lisbon Treaty, agreed by all EU countries and entered into force in 2009, which strengthened the position of European Parliament among other EU’s bodies, especially in the scope of the legislation. Now, the Parliament is a real co-legislator of the EU’s legal acts (also in respect to EU’s budget). Secondly because this time it is different. Since 2008 Europe has been struck by a financial and economic crisis. Tackling it causes the need of making decisions. Since the European Parliament plays a major role in the field of the economy, the importance of the voter’s decision is greater than before. And finally because this is the first time the voters are going to influence the presidency of the European Commission, as the leaders or the European governments must take the results of
the elections into account while putting forward the candidate for the president of the Commission. Moreover, to get the job, the candidate needs to be elected by the majority of the European Parliament. The polling stations in the Czech Republic will be open on Friday 23 May from 2pm to 10pm and on Saturday 24 May from 8am to 2pm. No postal voting is allowed in the Czech Republic. The voter shall be informed about the particular polling station they are assigned by the post by 20 May. The voters get to choose between the national political parties, although the majority of elected candidates decide to join the transnational political groups. 400 million of voters across EU are ahead to use their power and choose who will be in charge.
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The 16th National Selection Conference Strakonice is organised under the auspices of Mgr. Jiří Zimola, the Regional Council President of the South Bohemian Region and in cooperation with the Town of Strakonice and the Cultural Centre of Strakonice.
STRAKONICE
ŘEPICE
Projekt je podpořen Zdravým městem Strakonice na základě rozhodnutí občanů na VII. Fóru zdravého města