Independence Day Vanuatu - Jul 30
Vanuatu, officially the Republic of Vanuatu (French: République de Vanuatu,Bislama: Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some 1,750 kilometres (1,090 mi) east of northern Australia, 500 kilometres (310 mi) northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea. Vanuatu was first inhabited by Melanesian people. The first Europeans to visit the islands were the members of a Spanish expedition led by Portuguese navigator Fernandes de Queirós who arrived in Espiritu Santo in 1605 claiming the archipelago for Spain and bestowing that name to the island. In the 1880s France and the United Kingdom claimed parts of the country, and in 1906 they agreed on a framework for jointly managing the archipelago as the New Hebrides through a British–French Condominium. An independence movement arose in the 1970s, and the Republic of Vanuatu was created in 1980. The nation's name was derived from the word vanua ("land" or "home"), which occurs in several Austronesian languages, and the word tu ("stand"). Together the two words indicated the independent status of the new nation.
History The prehistory of Vanuatu is obscure; archaeological evidence supports the commonly held theory that peoples
speaking Austronesian languages first came to the islands some 4,000 years ago. Pottery fragments have been found dating back to 1300–1100 BCE. The Vanuatu group of islands was discovered by Europeans in 1606 when the Portugueseexplorer Pedro Fernandes de Queirós, working for the Spanish Crown, arrived on Espiritu Santo and called it La Austrialia del Espiritu Santo or "The Southern Land of the Holy Spirit", thinking he had arrived in Terra Australis or Australia. Europeans did not return until 1768, when Louis Antoine de Bougainville rediscovered the islands. In 1774, Captain Cook named the islands the New Hebrides, a name that would last until independence. In 1825, trader Peter Dillon's discovery of sandalwood on the island of Erromango began a rush of immigrants that ended in 1830 after a clash between immigrants and Polynesian workers. During the 1860s, planters in Australia, Fiji, New Spain, and the Samana Islands, in need of labourers, encouraged a long-term indentured labour trade called "blackbirding". At the height of the labour trade, more than one-half the adult male population of several of the Islands worked abroad. Fragmentary evidence indicates that the current population of Vanuatu is greatly reduced compared to pre-contact times. It was in the 19th century that both Catholic and Protestant missionaries arrived on the islands. For example, John Geddie (1815–1872), a Scots-Canadian Presbyterianmissionary, landed on the island of Aneityum in 1848 and spent the rest of his life there converting the inhabitants to Christianity. John Gibson Paton was a Scottish missionary whose life work was devoted to the region. Settlers also came, looking for land on which to establish cotton plantations. When international cotton prices collapsed, planters switched to coffee, cocoa, bananas, and, most successfully, coconuts. Initially, British subjects from Australia made up the majority, but the establishment of the Caledonian Company of the New Hebrides in 1882 soon tipped the balance in favour of French subjects. By the turn of the century, the French outnumbered the British two to one. The jumbling of French and British interests in the islands brought petitions for one or another of the two powers to annex the territory. In 1906, however, France and the United Kingdom agreed to administer the islands jointly. Called the British-French Condominium, it was a unique form of government, with separate governmental systems that came together only in a joint court. Melanesians were barred from acquiring the citizenship of either power. Challenges to this form of government began in the early 1940s. The arrival of Americans during World War II, with their informal demeanour and relative wealth, was instrumental in the rise of nationalism in the islands. The belief in a mythical messianic figure named John Frum was the basis for an indigenous cargo cult (a movement attempting to obtain industrial goods through magic) promising Melanesian deliverance. Today, John Frum is both a religion and a political party with a member in Parliament. The first political party was established in the early 1970s and originally was called the New Hebrides National Party. One of the founders was Father Walter Lini, who later became Prime Minister. Renamed the Vanua'aku Pati in 1974, the party pushed for independence; in 1980, amidst the brief Coconut War, the Republic of Vanuatu was created. During the 1990s, Vanuatu experienced political instability which eventually resulted in a more decentralised government. The Vanuatu Mobile Force, a paramilitary group, attempted a coup in 1996 because of a pay dispute. There were allegations of corruption in the government of Maxime Carlot Korman. New elections have been called for several times since 1997, most recently in 2004.
National Day Faroe Islands - Jul 29
Ólavsøka is a national holiday of the Faroe Islands, celebrated on July 29. It is the day when Løgting, the Faroese Parliament, opens its session. The literal meaning is "Saint Olaf's Wake" (vigilia sancti Olavi in Latin), from Saint Olaf's death at the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030 (see Olsok), but the Løgting predates this event. Like several other Faroese holidays, the vøka begins the evening before, so Ólavsøka always starts on July 28 with an opening ceremony. Ólavsøka is the day of the year when many Faroese crowd into the capital Tórshavn. There the national rowing competition finals are held, which is one of the highlights in Faroese sports. In addition, there are art exhibitions, folk music, and Faroese chaindance performances. The salute for Ólavsøka in Faroese is Góða Ólavsøku! (Good St. Olaf's Wake!). The stamps shown on the right were issued by Postverk Føroya on 18 May 1998, and the artwork was produced by Edward Fuglø.
The Ólavsøka concert on 27 July
Some of the festivities start some days before, depending on which day in the week Ólavsøka is. There is usually also an Ólavsøka concert in Tórshavn on 27 July in the evening. In 2010 the concert started at 20:00 and ended at around 3 in the morning, according to the schedule.
The Ólavsøka Eve Procession and Opening on Tinghúsvøllur on 28 July Normally the opening of Ólavsøka starts with a procession of sports people from Tórshavn, city council members, a brass band and people riding on horses. They walk in procession from the public school Kommunuskúlin down to the centre of town to Tinghúsvøllur on Vaglið, where people are waiting for the procession to arrive. The people who walk in procession then gather on the triangle-shaped Tinghúsvøllur in front of the parliament building (Løgtingshúsið og Tinghúsið), there will be a speech by someone who is appointed, and this person will officially open the Ólavsøka. A brass band normally plays at the opening.
Ólavsøka Boat Race on 28 July The The Ólavsøka Boat Race is always held on the eve of Ólavsøka on 28 July. Be-
fore the Ólavsøka festival there have been several other village festivals around the islands, where the Faroese boat race has been going on, starting at the Norðoyastevna in Klaksvík, which is either in the beginning of June or in the end of May. In the end of June there is an island festival in Suðuroy which is called Jóansøka. This festival is celebrated every second year it; is held in Tvøroyri (odd years) and every second years in Vágur (even years). The rowing competition on Jóansøka is always held on a Saturday. The Faroese boat race is in several parts, divided into groups of children, boys, girls, men and women. The boat races are also grouped by the size of the boats. All the boats are wooden rowing boats, the rowing people are sitting together two and two, and one person is steering the boat in the back of the boat. In Faroese the boats are called 5-mannafør, 6-mannafør, 8-mannafør and 10-mannafør. The boats who win the Ólavsøka Boat Race win a trophy and the boats who become Faroese Champions also win another trophy. Sometimes the same boat is the winner of both trophies. The rowing people who win also get medals. The distance which the boats are rowing is 1,000 meters at the Ólavsøka Boat Race, Sunleif Rasmussen directexcept for the children who row a shorter distance. In some places the larger boats row longer distances. The 8-mannafør row 1,500 meters and the 10-man- ing the Olavsoka Cantata 2009. nafør row 2,000 meters. But this is not possible in Tórshavn.
The Ólavsøka Procession and The Ólavsøka Cantata 29 July on29 July the Faroese Løgting (parliament) will open again after the summer holiday. The Faroese Prime Minister
On (Løgmaður) will give his speech, and the politicians will have the opportunity to comment on it the following days. But before the opening of the Løgting, there is a ceremony, which starts just before 11 in the morning, where the Faroese priests, the members of the Faroese Parliament, the head of the Police, some Danish officials and some other important people will walk in procession to the Cathedral of Tórshavn (Dómkirkjan, earlier called Havnar Kirkja). After the service in the church these people will walk in procession to the House of Parliament, which is called Tinghúsið. They will line up just outside the Tinghús facing the crowd of people who are standing around the Tinghúsvøllur. And then it is time for some classical music and choir music, the Olavsoka Cantata, which starts at 12 or just after 12. In 2009 it was the 100 year birthday of the Municipality of Tórshavn, and one of the most famous Faroese composers Sunnleif Rasmussen composed and directed the Ólavsøka Cantata, which was based on the history of Faroese music, back to the Folk Songs and the Psalms of Kingo and up to the present time with modern music. There were 160 choir singers, which came from all of the country.
La Hae Hawai`i U.S. - Jul 31
The flag of the state of Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian: Ka Hae Hawaiʻi) is the official standard symbolizing Hawaiʻi as a U.S. state. The same flag had also previously been used by the kingdom, protectorate, republic, and territory of Hawaiʻi. It is the only US state flag to feature the Union Flag of the United Kingdom, a holdover of the period in Hawaiian history when it was under the influence of the British Empire.
Ka Hae Hawaiʻi day In 1990, Governor of Hawaiʻi John D. Waihee III proclaimed July 31 to be Ka Hae Hawaiʻi Day, the Hawaiian Flag Day. It has been celebrated each year since then.
Independence Day Benin - Aug 01
Benin (formerly, Dahomey), officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, by Nigeria to the east and by Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. A majority of the population live on its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin. The capital of Benin is Porto-Novo, but the seat of government is in Cotonou, the country's largest city. Benin covers an area of approximately 110,000 square kilometers (42,000 sq mi), with a population of approximately 9.05 million. Benin is a tropical, sub-Saharan nation, highly dependent on agriculture, with substantial employment and income arising from subsistence farming. The official language of Benin is French, however, indigenous languages such as Fon and Yoruba are commonly spoken. The largest religious group in Benin is Roman Catholicism, followed closely by Islam, Vodun and Protestantism. Benin is a member of the United Nations, the African Union, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone, La Francophonie, the Community of Sahel-Saharan States, the African Petroleum Producers Association and the Niger Basin Authority. From the 17th to the 19th century, modern day Benin was ruled by the Kingdom of Dahomey. This region was referred to as the Slave Coast from as early as the 17th century due to the large number of slaves shipped to the New World during the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. After slavery was abolished, France took over the country and renamed it French Dahomey. In 1960, Dahomey gained full independence from France, bringing in a democratic government for the next 12 years. A Marxist-Leninist dictatorship called the People's Republic of Benin existed between 1972 and 1990. This regime led to repression and the collapse of the economy. The Republic of Benin was formed in 1991 which brought in multiparty elections.
History The Kingdom of Dahomey formed from a mixture of ethnic groups
on the Abomey plain. Historians theorize that the insecurity caused by slave trading may have contributed to mass migrations of groups to modern day Abomey, including some Aja, a Gbe people who are believed to have founded the city. Those Aja living in Abomey mingled with the local Fon people, also a Gbe people, creating a new ethnic group known as "Dahomey". The Gbe peoples are said to be descendents of a number of migrants from Wyo. Gangnihessou (a member of an Aja dynasty that in the 16th century along with the Aja populace had come from Tado before settling and ruling separately in what is nowAbomey, Allada, and Porto Novo) became the first ruler of the Dahomey Kingdom.Dahomey had a military culture aimed at securing and In 1892, the French, led by Colonel eventually expanding the borders of the small kingdom with its capDodds, a Senegalese mulatto, inital at modern day Abomey. The Dahomey Kingdom was known for its culture and traditions. vaded Dahomey. Young boys were often apprenticed to older soldiers, and taught the kingdom's military customs until they were old enough to join the army. Dahomey was also famous for instituting an elite female soldier corps, called Ahosi or "our mothers" in the Fongbe language, and known by many Europeans as the Dahomean Amazons. This emphasis on military preparation and achievement earned Dahomey the nickname of "black Sparta" from European observers and 19th century explorers like Sir Richard Burton. The kings of Dahomey sold their war captives into transatlantic slavery; otherwise the captives would have been killed in a ceremony known as the Annual Customs. By c.1750, the King of Dahomey was earning an estimated £250,000 per year by selling Africans to the European slave-traders. Though the leaders of Dahomey appeared initially to resist the slave trade, it flourished in the region of Dahomey for almost three hundred years (beginning in 1472 with a trade agreement with Portuguese merchants), leading to the area being named "the Slave Coast". Court protocols, which demanded that a portion of war captives from the kingdom's many battles be decapitated, decreased the number of enslaved people exported from the area. The number went from 20,000 per year at the beginning of the seventeenth century to 12,000 at the beginning of the 19th century. The decline was partly due to the banning of the trans-Atlantic slave trade by Britain and other countries. This decline continued until 1885, when the last Portuguese slave ship departed from the coast of the present-day Benin Republic. By the middle of the nineteenth century, Dahomey started to lose its status as the regional power. This enabled the French to take over the area in 1892. In 1899, the French included the land called French Dahomey within the French West Africa colony. In 1958, France granted autonomy to the Republic of Dahomey, and full independence as of August 1, 1960. The president who led them to independence was Hubert Maga. For the next twelve years, ethnic strife contributed to a period of turbulence. There were several coups and regime changes, with four figures dominating — Hubert Maga, Sourou Apithy,Justin Ahomadegbé and Emile Derlin Zinsou — the first three representing a different area and ethnicity of the country. These three agreed to form a presidential council after violence marred the 1970 elections. On May 7, 1972, Maga turned over power to Ahomadegbe. On October 26, 1972, Lt. Col.Mathieu Kérékou overthrew the ruling triumvirate, becoming president and stating that the country will not "burden itself by copying foreign ideology, and wants neither Capitalism, Communism, nor Socialism". On November 30, however, he announced that the country was officially Marxist, under the control of the Military Council of the Revolution (CNR), which nationalized the petroleum industry and banks. On November 30, 1975, he renamed the country to People's Republic of Benin. In 1979, the CNR was dissolved, and Kérékou arranged show elections where he was the only allowed candidate. Establishing relations with the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and Libya, he put nearly all businesses and economic activities under state control, causing foreign investment in Benin to dry up. Kérékou attempted to reorganize education, pushing his own aphorisms such as "Poverty is not a fatality", resulting in a mass exodus of teachers, along with a large number of other professionals. The regime financed itself by contracting to take nuclear waste from France. In 1980, Kérékou converted to Islam and changed his first name to Ahmed, then changed his name back after claiming to be a born-again Christian. In 1989, riots broke out after the regime did not have money to pay its army. The banking system collapsed. Eventually Kérékou renounced Marxism and a convention forced Kérékou to release political prisoners and arrange elections. The name of the country was changed to the Republic of Benin on March 1, 1990, once the newly formed country's constitution was complete, after the abolition of Marxism–Leninism in the nation in 1989. In 1991, Kérékou was defeated by Nicéphore Soglo, and became the first black African president to step down after an election. Kérékou returned to power after winning the 1996 vote. In 2001, a closely fought election resulted in Kérékou winning another term, after which his opponents claimed election irregularities. Kérékou and former president Soglo did not run in the 2006 elections, as both were barred by the constitution's restrictions on age and total terms of candidates. Kérékou is widely praised for making no effort to change the constitution so that he could remain in office or run again, unlike many African leaders. On March 5, 2006, an election was held that was considered free and fair. It resulted in a runoff between Yayi Boni and Adrien Houngbédji. The runoff election was held on March 19, and was won by Boni, who assumed office on April 6. The success of the fair multi-party elections in Benin won praise internationally. Boni was reelected in 2011, taking 53.18 percent of the vote in the first round—enough to avoid a runoff election, becoming the first president to win an election without a runoff since the restoration of democracy in 1991.
National Day Switzerland - Aug 01
The Swiss National Day (German: Schweizer Bundesfeier; French: Fête nationale Suisse; Italian: Festa nazionale svizzera; Romansh: Fiasta naziunala Svizra) is the national holiday of Switzerland, set on August 1. It is an official national holiday since 1994, although the day had been suggested for the celebration of the foundation of the Swiss Confederacy as early as 1889.
History
The date is inspired by the date of the Federal Charter of 1291, placed in "early August" (primo incipiente mense Augusto). The document is one of several dozen pacts attested for the territory of Switzerland in the period of the mid 13th to mid 14th century. The foundation of the Old Swiss Confederacy had been mostly associated with the Bund of Brunnen of 1315, or with the Rütlischwur, dated to 1307 by Aegidius Tschudi. The Federal Charter of 1291 first assumed great importance in a report by the Federal Department of Home Affairs of November 21, 1889, suggesting a celebration in Bern in 1891 that would combine the city's 700th anniversary with the Confederacy's 600th anniversary. The date of the Federal Charter came to replace the formerly more prominent, traditional date of November 8 Rütlischwur, 1307 in popular consciousness in the 20th century, specifically after the 650th anniversary celebrations of 1941. 1 August is today celebrated each year with paper lantern parades, bonfires, hanging strings of Swiss flags and fireworks.
Town-specific celebrations The day of independence is typically celebrated at a local, municipality
level though certain events draw nation-wide attention. Since the mid-nineteenth century, the Rhine Falls near Schaffhausen has illuminated its 25 meter high waterfalls for special events. Beginning in 1920, the waterfall "1. Augustweggen", bread has been regularly lit for the national holiday and since 1966 is now lit only for this holiday. At the historic location of Rütli Meadow above Lake baked to celebrate Swiss NaLucerne, a representational celebration is staged in the location where the tional Day legendary pledge of alliance, theRütlischwur is said to have taken place.
Swiss National Day celebrations around the world
The largest Swiss National Day event in the USA is organized and held annually by the Swiss Benevolent Society of New York. Usually held in Manhattan, New York, the event draws thousands of Swiss, Swiss-Americans and Friends of Switzerland from around New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. This tradition goes back several decades, and was originally held at their former hospice in Mount Kisco, New York during the 1970s. Celebrations are also held in Washington, District of Columbia by the Swiss Club of Washington D.C. on the Swiss Embassy grounds, and in the Los Angeles suburb of Whittier, in Swiss Park. The Swiss Park celebration features Swiss cultural events and games, including a crossbow competition.
People's Liberation Army Day China - Aug 01
The People's Liberation Army (PLA; simplified Chinese: 中国人民解放军; traditional Chinese: 中國人民 解放軍; pinyin: Zhōngguó Rénmín Jiěfàngjūn) is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on August 1, 1927 — celebrated annually as "PLA Day" — as the military arm of the Communist Party of China (CPC). The People's Liberation Army's insignia consists of a roundel with a red star bearing the Chinese characters for "Eight One", referring to August 1 (Chinese: 八一), the date of the 1927 Nanchang Uprising. The PLA is the world's largest military force, with approximately 3 million members, and has the world's largest (active) standing army, with approximately 2.25 million members. The PLA comprises five main service branches, consisting of the PLA Ground Force, PLA Navy (PLAN), PLA Air Force (PLAAF), Second Artillery Corps (strategic missile force), and the PLA Reserve Force. Military service is compulsory, in theory, for all men who attain the age of 18; women may register for duty in the medical, veterinary, and other technical services at ages as young as 14. However, a draft in China has never been enforced due to large numbers of volunteers from China's huge population. Demobilized servicemen are carried in a ready reserve, which is reinforced by a standby reserve of veterans and by the militia. The PLA is formally under the command of the Central Military Commission of the CPC; there is also an identical commission in the government, but it has no clear independent functions. The Ministry of National Defense, which operates under the State Council, does not exercise any authority over the PLA and is far less powerful than the Central Military Commission (CMC). The ministry assures continuing CPC control over the armed forces, and its primary role is that of a liaison office with foreign militaries. The political and military leadership have made a concerted effort to create a professional military force restricted to national defense and to the provision of assistance in domestic economic construction and emergency relief. This conception of the role of the PLA requires the promotion of specialized officers who can understand modern weaponry and handle combined arms operations. Troops around the country are stationed in seven military regions and more than 20 military districts. Chairman Hu Jintao has defined the missions of the PLA as: • Consolidate the ruling status of the Communist Party • Help ensure China's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and domestic security in order to continue national development • Safeguard China's expanding national interests
History
The People's Liberation Army was founded on 1 August 1927 during the Nanchang Uprising when troops of the Kuomintang (KMT) rebelled under the leadership of Zhu De, He Long,Ye Jianying and Zhou Enlai shortly after the end of the first Kuomintang–Communist alliance. They were then known as the Chinese Red Army (simplified Chinese: 红 军 ;traditional Chinese: 紅 軍 ; pinyin: hóngjūn). Between 1934 and 1935, the Red Army survived several campaigns led against it by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek and engaged in the Long March. During the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1937 to 1945, the Communist military forces were nominally integrated into the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China forming the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army units. During this time, these two military groups primarily used guerrilla warfare, fought a few battles with the Japanese while consolidating their ground by annexing nationalist troops and paramilitary forces behind the Japanese lines. After the end of the Sino-Japanese War, the Communist Party merged the two military groups and renamed the multi-million Vintage Chinese propaganda poster, strong force the "People's Liberation Army" and eventually won showing the PLA. The caption reads, the Chinese Civil War. A number of military regions were estab- "An Army of the People is Invincilished in 1949. On 11 November 1949, the Air Force leadership ble". The soldier on top is shown to structure was established and the Navy leadership the following be holding a copy of Quotations April. In 1950, the leadership structures of the artillery, armored from Chairman Mao Zedong. troops, air defense troops, public security forces, and worker–soldier militias were also established. The chemical warfare defense forces, the railroad forces, the communications forces, and the second artillery, as well as other forces, were established later. During the 1950s, the PLA with Soviet help transformed itself from a peasant army into a modern one. Part of this process was the reorganisation that created thirteen military regions in 1955. The PLA also contained many National Revolutionary Army units and Generals who had defected to the PLA. Ma Hongbin and his son Ma Dunjing (19061972)were the only two Muslim Generals who led a Muslim unit, the 81st corps to ever serve in the PLA. Han Youwen, a Salar Muslim General, also defected to the PLA. In November 1950, the PLA or People's Volunteer Armyintervened in the Korean War as United Nations forces under General Douglas MacArthur approached the Yalu River. Under the weight of this offensive, Chinese forces drove MacArthur's forces out of North Korea and captured Seoul, but were subsequently pushed back to a line just north of the 38th Parallel. That war also served as a catalyst for the rapid modernization of the PLAAF. In 1962, the PLA also fought India in the Sino-Indian War successfully neutralizing Indian defenses and achieving all objectives. Prior to the Cultural Revolution, military region commanders tended to remain in post for long periods. As the PLA took a stronger role in politics, this began to be seen as something of a threat to party (or, at least, civilian) control of the gun. The longest serving military region commanders were Xu Shiyou in the Nanjing Military Region (1954– 74), Yang Dezhi in the Jinan Military Region (1958–74), Chen Xilian in the Shenyang Military Region (1959–73), and Han Xianchu in the Fuzhou Military Region (1960–74). Establishment of a professional military force equipped with modern weapons and doctrine was the last of the Four Modernizationsannounced by Zhou Enlai and supported by Deng Xiaoping. In keeping with Deng's mandate to reform, the PLA has demobilized millions of men and women since 1978 and has introduced modern methods in such areas as recruitment and manpower, strategy, andeducation and training. In 1979, the PLA fought Vietnam over a border skirmish in the Sino-Vietnamese War where it was reported by Western media that China lost more than 20,000 soldiers. Both sides claimed victory. During the Sino-Soviet split, strained relations between China and Soviet Russia resulted in bloody border clashes and mutual backing for the opponents enemies. China and Afghanistan had neutral relations with each other during the King's rule. When the pro Soviet Afghan Communists seized power in Afghanistan in 1978, relations between China and the Afghan communists quickly turned hostile. The Afghan pro Soviet communists supported China's enemies in Vietnam and blamed China for supporting Afghan anti communist militants. China responded to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan by supporting the Afghan Mujahidin and ramping up their military presence near Afghanistan in Xinjiang. China acquired military equipment from America to defend itself from Soviet attack. The People's Liberation Army trained and supported the Afghan Mujahidin during the Soviet war in Afghanistan. China moved its training camps for the mujahideen from Pakistan into China itself. Hundreds of millions worth of anti aircraft missiles, rocket launchers and machine guns were given to the Mujahidin by the Chinese. Chinese military advisors and army troops were present with the Mujahidin during training. The People's Liberation Army regularly intrudes into the Indian territory of Arunachal Pradesh. It threatens locals, destroys boundary walls and engages in bullying tactics. It also supports Maoist terrorists by supplying arms and ammunition and imparting training to them, and in many other covert ways to destabilize India. In the 1980s, China shrunk its military considerably to free up resources for economic development, resulting in the relative decline in resources devoted to the PLA. Following the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, ideological correctness was temporarily revived as the dominant theme in Chinese military affairs. Reform and modernization have today resumed their position as the PLA's priority objectives, although the armed forces' political loyalty to the CPC has remained a leading concern. Another area of concern to the political leadership was the PLA's involvement in civilian economic activities. These activities were thought to have impacted PLA readiness and has led the political leadership to attempt to divest the PLA from its non-military business interests. Beginning in the 1980s, the PLA tried to transform itself from a land-based power, centred on a vast ground force, to a smaller, mobile, high-tech one capable of mounting operations beyond its borders. The motivation for this was that a massive land invasion by Russia was no longer seen as a major threat, and the new threats to China are seen to be a declaration of independence by Taiwan, possibly with assistance from the United States, or a confrontation over the Spratly Islands. In 1985, under the leadership of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the CMC, the PLA changed from being constantly prepared to "hit early, strike hard and to fight a nuclear war" to developing the military in an era of peace. The PLA reoriented itself to modernization, improving its fighting ability, and to become a worldclass force. Deng Xiaoping stressed that the PLA needed to focus more on quality rather than on quantity. The decision of the Chinese government in 1985 to reduce the size of the military by one million was completed by 1987. Staffing in military leadership was cut by about 50 percent. During the Ninth Five Year Plan (1996–2000) the PLA was reduced by a further 500,000. The PLA had also been expected to be reduced by another 200,000 by 2005. The PLA has focused on increasing mechanization and informatization so as to be able to fight a high-intensity war. Jiang Zemin in 1990 called on the military to "meet political standards, be militarily competent, have a good working style, adhere strictly to discipline, and provide vigorous logistic support" (Chinese: 部队要做到政治合格、军事过硬 、作风优良、纪律严明、保障有力;pinyin: bùduì yào zuò dào zhèngzhì hégé, jūnshì guòyìng, zuòfēng yōuliáng, jìlǜ yánmíng, bǎozhàng yǒulì). The 1991 Gulf War provided the Chinese leadership with a stark realization that the PLA was an oversized, obsolescent force. The possibility of a militarized Japan has also been a continuous concern to the Chinese leadership since the late 1990s. In addition, China's military leadership has been reacting to and learning from the successes and failures of the American military during the Kosovo War, the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the ongoing Iraqi insurgency. All these lessons inspired China to transform PLA from a military based on quantity to one based on quality. Chairman Jiang Zemin officially made a "Revolution in Military Affairs" (RMA) part of the official national military strategy in 1993 in order to modernize the Chinese armed forces. A goal of the RMA is to transform the PLA into a force capable of winning what it calls "local wars under high-tech conditions" rather than a massive, numbers-dominated ground-type war. The Chinese military planners call for short decisive campaigns, limited in both their geographic scope and their political goals. In contrast to the past, more attention is given to reconnaissance, mobility, and deep reach. This new vision has shifted resources towards the navy and air force. PLA is also actively preparing for space warfare and cyber-warfare. For the past 10 to 20 years, the PLA has acquired some advanced weapons systems from Russia, including Sovremenny class destroyers, Sukhoi Su-27 and Sukhoi Su-30aircraft, and Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines. It has also completed several new destroyers and frigates including 2 AAW Type 052C class guided missile destroyers. In addition, the PLAAF has built an indigenous J-10 fighter aircraft. The PLA launched the new Jin class nuclear submarines on 3 December 2004 capable of launching nuclear warheads that could strike targets across the Pacific Ocean. In August 2010, PLA Daily suggested that Chinese military strategy was out of date, and that China must "audaciously learn from the experience of the information cultures of foreign militaries"
Lammas Scotland - Aug 01
In some English-speaking countries in the Northern Hemisphere, August 1 is Lammas Day (Anglo-Saxon hlaf-mass, "loaf-mas"), the festival of the wheat harvest, and is the first harvest festival of the year. On this day it was customary to bring to church a loaf made from the new crop, which began to be harvested at Lammastide. The loaf was blessed, and in Anglo-Saxon England it might be employed afterwards to work magic: A book of Anglo-Saxon charms directed that the lammas bread be broken into four bits, which were to be placed at the four corners of the barn, to protect the garnered grain. In many parts ofEngland, tenants were bound to present freshly harvested wheat to their landlords on or before the first day of August. In the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, where it is referred to regularly, it is called "the feast of first fruits". The blessing of first fruits was performed annually in both the Eastern and Western Churches on the first or the sixth of August (the latter being the feast of the Transfiguration of Christ). Lammas coincides with the feast of St. Peter in Chains, commemorating St. Peter's miraculous deliverance from prison.
History In mediæval times the feast was sometimes known in England and Scotland as the "Gule of August", but the meaning
of "gule" is unclear. Ronald Hutton suggests following the 18th-century Welsh clergyman antiquary John Pettingall that it is merely anAnglicisation of Gŵyl Awst, the Welsh name of the "feast of August". OED and most etymological dictionaries give it a more circuitous origin similar to gullet; from O.Fr. goulet, dim. of goule, "throat, neck," from L. gula "throat,". A Welsh derivation would point to a pre-Christian origin for Lammas and a link to the Gaelic festival of Lughnasadh. Several antiquaries beginning with John Brady offered a back-construction to its being originally known as Lambmass, under the undocumented supposition that tenants of the Cathedral of York, dedicated to St. Peter ad Vincula, of which this is the feast, would have been required to bring a live lamb to the church, or, with John Skinner, "because Lambs then grew out of season." This is a folk etymology, of which OED notes that it was "subsequently felt as if from LAMB + MASS". For many villeins, the wheat must have run low in the days before Lammas, and the new harvest began a season of plenty, of hard work and company in the fields, reaping in teams. Thus there was a spirit of celebratory play. In the medieval agricultural year, Lammas also marked the end of the hay harvest that had begun after Midsummer. At the end of hay-making a sheep would be loosed in the meadow among the mowers, for him to keep who could catch it. In Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (1.3.19) it is observed of Juliet, "Come Lammas Eve at night shall she [Juliet] be fourteen." Since Juliet was born Lammas eve, she came before the harvest festival, which is significant since her life ended before she could reap what she had sown and enjoy the bounty of the harvest, in this case full consummation and enjoyment of her love with Romeo. William Hone speaks in The Every-Day Book (1838) of a later festive Lammas day sport common among Scottish farmers near Edinburgh. He says that they "build towers...leaving a hole for a flag-pole in the center so that they may raise their colors." When the flags over the many peat-constructed towers were raised, farmers would go to others' towers and attempt to "level them to the ground." A successful attempt would bring great praise. However, people were allowed to defend their towers, and so everyone was provided with a "tooting-horn" to alert nearby country folk of the impending attack and the battle would turn into a "brawl." According to Hone, more than four people had died at this festival and many more were injured. At the day's end, races were held, with prizes given to the townspeople.
Neo-Paganism
Lammas is a Neo-Pagan holiday, often called Lughnasadh, celebrating the first harvest and the reaping of grain. It is a cross-quarter holiday halfway between the Summer Solstice (Litha) and the Autumnal Equinox (Mabon). In the northern hemisphere, Lammas takes place around August 1 with the Sun near the midpoint of Leo in the tropical zodiac, while in the southern hemisphere Lammas is celebrated around February 1 with the Sun near the midpoint of Aquarius. On the Wheel of the Year, it is opposite Imbolc, which is celebrated on February 2 in the northern hemisphere, and late July / early August in the southern hemisphere.
uses Other Lammas leaves or Lammas growth refers to a second crop of leaves produced in high summer by some species of
trees in temperate countries to replace those lost to insect damage. They often differ slightly in shape, texture and/or hairiness from the earlier leaves.
National Day Macedonia - Aug 02
Republic Day or the Day of the Republic (Macedonian: Ден на Републиката, Den na Republikata) is a major national holiday of the Republic of Macedonia. It is celebrated on 2 August, which is also a major religious holiday – Ilinden (Macedonian: Илинден; St. Elijah day), according to the Julian Calendar. It commemorates two major events in the establishment of the statehood of the Republic of Macedonia, and which took place on this date: • The Ilinden Uprising of 1903 which was organized by the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization against the Ottoman Empire, and during which a short-lived republic was proclaimed, and • The First Assembly of ASNOM of 1944, during World War II, which laid the foundation of the modern Macedonian Republic. Macedonians have traditionally celebrated this day, also called Ilinden, because of its religious significance which has its roots in the Christian St. Elijah (Macedonian: Св. Илиja, Sv. Iliya), and also in the earlier pagan traditions. It has been proclaimed a national holiday since 1944. Major gatherings are held in the monasteries, and there is a march of horsemen from Skopje, the capital, to Kruševo, where the core of the Ilinden Uprising leaders established the Kruševo Republic. The main celebration takes place in Kruševo, in the area called Mechkin Kamen (Bear's Rock), where a major battle with the Ottoman army took place in August 1903.
Armed Forces Day - Aug 03 Equatorial Guinea
Armed force day is one those days, which is celebrated in many countries in order to respect their military organizations together. On this day, all the divisions of the defense together are respected for their huge devotion and dedication towards the country. Though different military organization have their own day, such as Army Day, Air Force Day, Navy Day etc, but the Armed forces Day together celebrates the achievement of all these branches of defense. The armed Forces Day is celebrated on August 3rd every year in Equatorial Guinea.
History The military history of Equatorial Guinea is not very great.
The military has been reorganized several times for the betterment and more effectiveness and no doubt, the results were successful and fruitful. The total number of people serving in the Armed forces amounts to 2500 only. Out of these 2500, 1400 are in Army, 200 in the navy, 400 are deployed as Paramilitary police and the air force comprises of only 120 service people. Basically, the army is not trained up to the requirements of the present day, and neither are they equipped with the latest versions of arms and ammunitions. The present armed forces of Equatorial Guinea are equipped with the arms, which are light and small. The arms include small arms, RPGs, and Mortars. The forces are not equipped with latest heavy arms. The light armored vehicles and trucks are all soviet style and do not run or work properly. The armed forces also contain another division called Gendarmerie. The numbers of this division is not known and are trained by the help of French Military cooperation. Thus the armed force of Equatorial Guinea are not very well trained and are not self sufficient to operate, and thus rely on foreigners to operate. The number of paved aerodromes, number of working aircrafts etc are all very less. They acquire various ammunitions and warfare vehicles from foreign countries.
TRADITIONS AND ACTIVITIES
In spite of having a bad military record the armed forces day is celebrated with great enthusiasm in Equatorial Guinea. There is no lack of celebration for the armed forces. Though small in number, they are felicitated well on that auspicious day. The armed forces are said to be the most devotional and dedicated work men. This is the reason they are so much respected. The lifestyle they live comprises of discipline and honor, and the hardship they undergo, is because of the countrymen. Thus, on this one day, they are respected thoroughly for their kind devotion in front of all those for whom they take up all those pains. The celebration includes a felicitation ceremony where these men are honored and respected, followed by a huge and grand dinner in the name of the Armed Forces. The whole country gets a public holiday on this day, and the armed forces men enjoy together. They meet, they eat, they drink, for one day they lay the burden of responsibility away from their shoulders and enjoy to their utmost level and why should not they? They have also the right to live for themselves, but they live for others more than they live for themselves.
Independence Day Niger - Aug 03
Niger, officially the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east. Niger covers a land area of almost 1,270,000 km2, making it the largest nation in West Africa, with over 80 percent of its land area covered by the Sahara desert. The country's predominantly Islamic population of just above 15,000,000 is mostly clustered in the far south and west of the nation. The capital city is Niamey, located in the far southwest corner of Niger. Niger is a developing country, and consistently ranks as one of the lowest ranks of the United Nations' Human Development Index (HDI), 186th of 187 countries in 2011. Much of the non-desert portions of the country are threatened by periodic drought and desertification. The economy is concentrated around subsistence and some export agriculture clustered in the more fertile south, and the export of raw materials, especially uranium ore. Niger remains handicapped by its landlocked position, desert terrain, poor education and poverty of its people, lack of infrastructure, poor health care, and environmental degradation. Nigerien (/niːˈʒɛəriən/ or pronunciation: /naɪdʒɪrɪˈɛn/) society reflects a diversity drawn from the long independent histories of its several ethnic groups and regions and their relatively short period living in a single state. Historically, what is now Niger has been on the fringes of several large states. Since independence, Nigeriens have lived under five constitutions and three periods of military rule. Following a military coup in 2010, Niger has now become a democratic, multi-party state. A majority live in rural areas, and have little access to advanced education.
History While most of what is now Niger has been subsumed into the
inhospitable Sahara desert in the last two thousand years, five thousand years ago the north of the country was fertile grasslands. Populations of pastoralists have left paintings of abundant wildlife, domesticated animals, chariots, and a complex culture that dates back to at least 10,000 BCE. Several former northern villages and archaeological sites date from the Green Sahara period of 7,500–7,000 to 3,500–3,000 BCE.
Early historical period:
The Songhai Empire expanded into what is modern Niger from the 15th century, reaching as far as Agadez before its collapse in 1591, from which the modern Zarma and Songhai peoples trace their history. At its fall, portions of the empire The Kaouar escarpment, forming an and refugees from modern Mali formed a series of Songhai oasis in the Ténéré desert. states, with the Dendi Kingdom becoming the most powerful. From the 13th century, the nomadic Tuareg formed large confederations, pushed southward, into the Aïr Mountains, displacing some previous residents to the south. At their peak, the Tuareg confederations ruled most of what is now northern Niger, and extended their influence into modern Nigeria. In the 18th century, Fula pastoralists moved into the Liptako area of the west, while smaller Zarma kingdoms, siding with various Hausa states, clashed with the expanding Fulani Empire of Sokoto from the south. The colonial border with British Nigeria was in part based on the rupture between the Sokoto Caliphate to the south, and Hausa ruling dynasties which had fled to the north. In the far east around the Lake Chad basin, the successive expansion of the Kanem Empire and Bornu Empire spread ethnically Kanuri and Toubou rulers and their subject states as far west as Zinder and the Kaouar Oases from the 10th to the 17th centuries. In the 19th century, contact with the West began when the first European explorers — notably Mungo Park (British) and Heinrich Barth (German) — explored the area, searching for the source of the Niger River. Although French efforts at "pacification" began before 1900, dissident ethnic groups, especially the desert Tuareg, were not fully subdued until 1922, when Niger became a French colony. Niger's colonial history and development parallel that of other French West African territories. France administered its West African colonies through a governor general in Dakar, Senegal, and governors in the individual territories, including Niger. In addition to conferring French citizenship on the inhabitants of the territories, the 1946 French constitution provided for decentralization of power and limited participation in political life for local advisory assemblies.
Early independence:
A further revision in the organization of overseas territories occurred with the passage of the Overseas Reform Act (Loi Cadre) of 23 July 1956, followed by reorganizing measures enacted by the French Parliament early in 1957. In addition to removing voting inequalities, these laws provided for creation of governmental organs, assuring individual territories a large measure of self-government. After the establishment of the Fifth French Republic on 4 December 1958, Niger became an autonomous state within the French Community. Following full independence on 3 August 1960, however, membership was allowed to lapse.
Single party and military rule (1961–1991):
For its first fourteen years as an independent state, Niger was run by a singleparty civilian regime under the presidency of Hamani Diori. In 1974, a combination of devastating droughtand accusations of rampant corruption resulted in a coup d'état that overthrew the Diori regime. Col. Seyni Kountché and a small military group ruled the country until Kountché's death in 1987. He was succeeded by his Chief of Staff, Col. Ali Saibou, who released political prisoners, liberalized some of Niger's laws and policies, and promulgated a new constitution, with the creation of a single party constitutional Second Republic. However, President Saibou's efforts to control political reforms failed in the face of union and student demands to institute a multi-party democratic system. The Saibou regime acquiesced to these demands by the end of 1990. New political parties and civic associations sprang up, and a national peace conference was convened in July 1991 to prepare the way for the adoption of a new constitution and the holding of free and fair elections. The debate was often contentious and accusatory, but under the leadership of Prof. André Salifou, the conference developed a plan for a transition government.
Third Republic:
Niger
While leading a military authority that ran the government (Conseil de Salut National) during a 6-month transition period, Baré enlisted specialists to draft a new constitution for a Fourth Republic announced in May 1996. Baré organized a presidential election in July 1996. While voting was still going on, he replaced the electoral commission. The new commission declared him the winner after the polls closed. His party won 57% of parliament seats in a flawed legislative election in November 1996. When his efforts to justify his coup and subsequent questionable elections failed to convince donors to restore multilateral and bilateral economic assistance, a desperate Baré ignored an international embargo against Libya and sought Libyan funds to aid Niger's economy. In repeated violations of basic civil liberties by the regime, opposition leaders were imprisoned; journalists often arrested, and deported by an unofficial militia composed of police and military; and independent media offices were looted and burned. As part of an initiative started under the 1991 national conference, however, the government signed peace accords in April 1995 with all, meaning Tuareg and Toubou groups that had been in rebellion since 1990. The Tuareg claimed they lacked attention and resources from the central government. The government agreed to absorb some former rebels into the military and, with French assistance, help others return to a productive civilian life.
Fifth Republic since 1999:
On 9 April 1999, Baré was killed in a coup led by Maj. Daouda Malam Wanké, who established a transitional National Reconciliation Council to oversee the drafting of a constitution for a Fifth Republic with a French style semi-presidential system. In votes that international observers found to be generally free and fair, the Nigerien electorate approved the new constitution in July 1999 and held legislative and presidential elections in October and November 1999. Heading a coalition of the National Movement for a Developing Society (MNSD) and the Democratic and Social Convention (CDS), Mamadou Tandja won the election. The new second term government of the Fifth Republic took office on 30 December 2002. In August 2002, serious unrest within the military occurred in Niamey, Diffa, and Nguigmi, but the government was able to reA Nigerien rebel fighter. Februstore order within several days. The legislature elected in December 2004 contained seven political par- ary 2008 ties. President Mamadou Tandja was re-elected in December 2004 and reappointed Hama Amadou as Prime Minister.Mahamane Ousmane, the head of the CDS, was re-elected President of the National Assembly (parliament) by his peers. In June 2007, Seyni Oumarou was nominated as the new Prime Minister after Hama Amadou was democratically forced out of office by the National Assembly through a motion of no confidence. From 2007 to 2008, the Second Tuareg Rebellion took place in northern Niger, worsening economic prospects and shutting down political progress. In a February 2010 coup d'état, a military junta was established in response to Tandja's attempted extension of his political term through constitutional manipulation. The coup established a junta led by the Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy, which then held elections in 2011 that were judged internationally to be free and fair.
Martyr's Day Guinea Bissau - Aug 03
Colonization Martyr’s Day is observed as an anniversary of the killings of Pidjiguiti — a day of remembrance of the brave martyrs of the nation.
History
Guinea-Bissau is a country of the western African continent on Atlantic Ocean. Populated by the Malinke, Fulani and other people from West Africa, Portuguese were the first ones to visit the country during the 15th century. Later on, it became one of the Portuguese colonies (1879). The history of Guinea-Bissau was dominated by Portugal from the 1450s to 1970s. Since independence, the country has been primarily controlled by a single-party system. Portuguese conquest and the consolidation of country’s interior did not start till the last half of 19th century. This was the time, when Portuguese lost a portion of the island to the French from West Africa. The struggle for independence was started in 1956 by PAIGC (African Party for Independence of Guinea & Cape Verde). In 1961, it started the armed rebellion against Portuguese. After repeated pressure from the PAIGC, the Portuguese finally met their downfall in 1974. Following Carnation Revolution in April 1974 at Portugal, the country granted independence for the Guinea-Bissau on the September 10th of 1974. Half-brother of Amílcar Cabral, Luís Cabral, was the Guinea-Bissau’s first president. Colonization Martyr’s Day is observed as an anniversary of the killings of Pidjiguiti. It is celebrated on August 3. It is marked as a day of remembrance of the brave martyrs of the nation. It originates from the Pidjiguiti massacre of 1959. The PAIGC launched their first major movement by instigating the dock-workers strike for better salaries. They did it at Pijiguiti Docks in the Guinea’s Port of Bissau on August 3, 1959. The P.I.D.E. (political police) suppressed this strike, open wild fire on striking workers and killed more than 50 people. The political authorities put the entire blame on the PAIGC for framing discontentment among the poor, absent-minded workers. However, the loss had already occurred; more than 50 families lost their working heads. It urged a national trauma, which would never be fully cured. That traumatic day of August 3, 1959 is observed nationwide as the Colonization Martyr’s Day.
TRADITIONS AND ACTIVITIES
The Colonization Martyr’s Day is marked as a public holiday in Guinea-Bissau. There are no real celebrations on this day in the country. It is a day of national grief for the citizens of the nation. People on this day, mourn the Pidjiguiti massacre. They light candles and torch processions are a common feature of this day. In remembrance of the departed souls, they also observe 5 minutes of nationwide silence. On this date, the President of the state delivers a speech, which is telecasted live on a nationwide scale. Here, he passionately remembers the sacrifices of the martyrs of the country and also talks about the economic and military upgrade of Guinea-Bissau. Gradually over the years the people have come to terms to the loss….which still pains.
Revolution Day Burkina Faso - Aug 04
Anniversary of the Revolution is a national holiday to commemorate the revolution that took place on August 5, 1960. Former Upper Volta is now known as Burkina Faso. It was named Burkina Faso after the 1983 revolution that saw the rise of Thomas Sankara to power. Burkina Faso means “the land of upright people”.
its first military coup in 1966, and civilian rule returned in 1978. Another revolt took place in 1980, led by Saye Zerbo but he was later overthrown in 1982. In 1983, a counter coup was launched under the leadership of the charismatic Captain Thomas Sankara to power. On this day, the country was renamed as Burkina Faso. As mentioned before it means “the land of upright people”, in More and Dioula which are the major native languages of the country. Literally, “Burkina” mean the “men of integrity” in More language, and the meaning of “Faso” is “father’s house” in Dioula. The Republic of Upper Volta gained freedom in 1960. The first president was Maurice Yameogo of the Voltaic Democratic Union. After he came to power, every political party was banned by Yameogo. The government survived until 1966. After that when the mass unrest grew out of control military intervened. The military revolt deposed Yameogo. The constitution was suspended and the National Assembly was dissolved. Lt. Col. Sangoule Lamizana was placed at the head of the government. The army was there in power until 1970. After that, the constitution was ratified and Lamizana remained the head of the mixed civil military government throughout the 70s. On November 25, 1980, the Col. Saye Zerbo overthrew the President Lamizana and left him in the bloodless coup. The 1977 constitution was eradicated and the Military Committee of Recovery for National Progress was established as the main governmental body. CSP (Council of Popular Salvation) overthrew Zerbo in 1982. Unrest continued to grow amongst the moderates and the radicals in the CSP. Capt. Thomas Sankara, the then prime minister was arrested. The efforts to release him resulted in another military coup. Following the coup, Sankara formed the CNR (National Council for the Revolution) and made himself the president. He was strongly anti-corruption. Sankara did a lot to “mobilize the masses”. For this purpose, he established CDR (Committees for the Defense of the Revolution). They had another function of implementing the revolutionary programs of the CNR. The exact membership of the CNR could never be known. It remained a secret till the end. The CNR contained the two small Marxist-Leninist groups. Sankara himself, Compaore, Maj. Jean-Baptiste Lingani and Capt. Henri Zongo – all the leftist military officers, who dominated the regime.
TRADITIONS AND ACTIVITIES
On August 4, 1984, the “land of honorable people”, Burkina Faso, emerged out of Upper Volta. Sankara, on this very day launched a movement to mobilize the masses. The enigmatic leader sought by word, and by deed to initiate this massive boot strap development revolution. The fellow citizens of Sankara still commemorate the endeavors of their strong ideological leader on Revolution Day.
Constitution Day Cook Islands - Aug 04
The Constitution of the Cook Islands took effect on August 4, 1965, when the Cook Islands became a self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand. The anniversary of these events in 1965 is commemorated annually on Constitution Day, with week long activities known as Te Maevea Nui Celebrations locally.
Tibor Navracsics will attend the next meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Cyprus Cyprus that took over the EU Presidency as of July 2012. The European justice ministers will talk about the details of the data protection reform, and will also discuss the proposal for a directive on the freezing and confiscation of proceeds
of crime in the European Union and the proposed regulation creating a European account preservation order to facilitate cross-border debt recovery in civil and commercial matters.
Informal Meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council, home affairs items (Online 23 Jul) Informal meeting of home affairs ministers was held on 23 July 2012 in Nicosia and organised by the Cyprus EU Presidency. Head of the Hungarian delegation was Mr. Károly Kontrát, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Ministry of Interior. The following topics were on the agenda:
1. The third Annual Report on Immigration and Asylum
The European Commission has published the report recently which is a starting point for discussing future priorities: fight against illegal migration and trafficking in human beings, proper integration of migrants, enhanced cooperation with countries of origin and transit. In Hungary’s point of view the efforts have to be concentrated on the implementation of the Roadmap EU Action on Migratory Pressure which has been adopted in spring, and on the removal of illegal migration route leading from Turkey through the Western Balkan to Hungary and other EU Member States, whereas in these fields positive
achievements have been made. This is closely related to Serbia, as EU funding has been provided to develop migration and asylum capacities in the country. Hungary contributes to it because irregular migratory pressure from Western Balkan is identified as the biggest problem.
2. Security in cyber space
Hungary intends to pay greater attention to this topic since years and welcomed that the Cyprus Presidency put it on agenda. In the first half of 2011 Hungarian EU Presidency tackled with cyber crime in the framework of the ministerial conference. During autumn 2012 significant series of conferences will be held and all the aspects of the topic will be analysed because the recent National Security Strategy foresaw the development of the relating capacities. Taking into account the Member States’ national strategies and opinions on the most important threats, the discussion of this session will contribute to the development of the European Cyber
Security Strategy.
3. Challenges of the security industry – research and development in the field of security
Mr. Gilles de Kerchove, EU Counterterrorism Coordinator made a presentation on Security research, which is of particular concern at the moment. Hungary traditionally attaches great importance to the innovation, continuously monitors technical development and responds appropriately when crime exploits the inherent opportunities. Therefore Hungary agrees with the conclusions which aim to allocate resources to the research and development in the field of security for the future sevenyear period.
4. The situation in Syria
Ministers discussed in closed session the asylum aspects of the situation in Syria. The Bulgarian Minister of Interior informed about the terror attack which has been committed in Burgas.
Pé t e r Szijjá r t ó t r a v e ls t o A ze r ba ija n (Online 23 Jul) State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and External Economic Relations Peter Szijjártó is leaving for a two-day visit to Azerbaijan on Sunday. Szijjártó, who co-chairs the Hungarian-Azerbaijan joint economic committee, will
hold talks in Baku with Minister of Economic Development Shahin Mustafayev and Executive Director of the State Oil Fund Shahmar Movsumov on the potential involvement of Hungarian companies in Azerbaijani
ence which (Online 27 college and Jul) Prime university is Minister Vikeligible for Orbán tor support. To has held a underline of series he this, consultations added that with political the point repartner orquirements ganisations, for admisrecognized to sion economists, higher eduand with sevcation institrade eral tutions will and interest show which associations. universities The series and colleges commenced were most with a meetpopular ing with repamong apresentatives plicants. of the ChrisThose that tian Demo- Zsolt Semjén and Viktor Orbán (photo: Csaba Pelsőczy) w e r e c r a t i c avoided by People's students P a r t y not would (KDNP), durreceive suping which the port the folgovernlowing year. ment's past During conyears two sultations diswere with winecussed. makers, isThe following of sues the day, quality and Prime Minisorigin proter met leadtection were ers of the addressed. Hungarian Afterwards, Chamber of following a Commerce meeting with and Industry leaders of (MKIK), trade union he where confederasaid that his aim was to Viktor Orbán and Minister of Rural Development Sándor Fazekas tions Liga and MOSZ, convince Prime the Hungarians among the leaders of Magosz (photo: Csaba Pelsőczy) Minister said that working that the govis better than ernment is unemployopen to the ment. New of matter must jobs inwage also be gencreases, but in erated the takes to order firm stand demonstrate that wages that employcannot be ment yields raised nor inhigher can a social comes than system be benefits. He on built said serious credit. It was objections to also agreed prothe that the job gramme of protection tax cuts were action plan likely to be must be imraised, but plemented participants in the na- Viktor Orbán and the leaders of trade union confederations (photo: and the real term value tional econ- Gergely Botár) of pensions had omy Agricultural and rural development voiced support for the policy. were also topics of discussion within must be maintained. The consultations continued with the framework of the series of nego- Following this, Viktor Orbán met with non-profit, economic, public and mu- tiations when the Prime Minister met the Board of the Hungarian Rectors’ nicipal beneficiaries of development leaders of the National Association of Conference (MRK) to discuss the policy. Accompanied by the Presi- Hungarian Farmers' Societies and problems of graduate unemployment dent of the National Development Co-operatives (Magosz). In a joint and retirement. According to Barna Agency, Viktor Orbán provided an statement, Viktor Orbán and Magosz Mezey, President of the conference, overall presentation on development head István Jakab stated that, the Prime Minister was open and policy and the government's New among others, protecting farmland constructive and he sees the values Széchenyi Plan. The Prime Minister and drinking water under the super- and successes of Hungarian higher said that EU funds contribute signifi- vision of a national authority was in- education clearly. Priorities of higher cantly to the Hungarian state budget cluded in both the government's education and legislative questions and are the main source for develop- programme and the fundamental law, were also discussed and the parties ment funding. For this reason, the and most of the proposals made by agreed that rectors will make recomHungarian government has also re- Magosz had been successfully im- mendations to the government shortly. alized the importance of the absorp- plemented. tion of EU funding and in order to At consultations conducted with the Finally, Viktor Orbán met the Board harmonize development project has board of the Hungarian Chamber of of the National Association of Entrefounded the National Development Pharmacists (MGYK), the Prime Min- preneurs and Employers (VOSZ), Policy Cabinet led by the Prime Min- ister offered financial assistance to where head of the organisation Sánister. pharmacists for the repurchasing of dor Demján stated that the government's employment-supporting tax The Prime Minister also met mem- pharmacies. bers of the National Forum (Nemzeti Meeting Roma council leaders, the reductions, and especially the workFórum), a conservative organisation, Prime Minister said an operative place protection plan, are steps in the with whom it was agreed that the committee would be set up with the right direction. The Prime Minister government had made significant intention of assessing the implemen- said he wanted to have at least progress in several areas that the tation of schemes to help the Roma 300,000 people employed in public forum considered important, such as people on a quarterly basis. Roma work schemes by next year and the self-sustainable villages, social coop- council President Flórián Farkas de- final aim is that once public work eratives, Hungaricums, the policy of clared that more progress had been schemes are available to all, nobody opening towards the East and the made in Roma integration during the should receive social benefits if they National Equestrian Programme. past year than during the eight years are physically fit to work. The Prime Minister then held a meet- of previous governments. He quoted Today in an interview on public radio ing with former central bank gover- the European Roma Strategy and MR1-Kossuth, the Prime Minister assessed the two-week series of connors Zsigmond Járai, György Surányi public work schemes as examples. and Ákos Péter Bod, as well as with To discuss the situation of higher ed- sultations, saying that the job President of the Hungarian Financial ucation, the Prime Minister met with protection action plan enjoys nationSupervisory Authority (PSZAF) heads of the conservative youth wide recognition. He said that during Károly Szász and economist László movement Fidelitas. He said the gov- the consultations he had received a Csaba, with whom he discussed the ernment wants to finance students number of interesting proposals, but potential impacts on Hungary of a and not the institutions so that stu- the need to change the direction of bank union within the European dents should have the power to influ- Government policy had not been raised. Union.
US welcomes Hungary’s proactive role in Afghanistan (Online 23 Jul) The U n i t e d of States America has expressed its appreciation of Hungary’s leading role n i Afghanistan, SziPéter jjártó, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Ext e r n a l Economic Relations on said MR1-Kossuth Hungarpublic ian radio’s mornshow ing called 180 Minutes. The State Secretary informed listeners that he had explained to the representatives of local foreign affairs institutes why there was a need to adopt a new fundamental law in Hungary. ’I highlighted that following the
change of regime, Hungary was the only post-communist country in Central Europe that was unable to adopt a new constitution.’ Péter Szijjártó has also met the leaders of the most significant Jewish organizations who welcomed the steps
taken by the government so far. The State Secretary asked them to intervene to ask American authorities to ban the activities of the news portal Kurucinfo, which operates from a US server, something US authorities have refused to do citing freedom of expression. With regard to his ongoing Azerbaijani talks, he pointed out that he has been consulting on the potential involvement of Hungarian companies in Azerbaijani projects, particularly in the fields of agriculture and construction.
IMF/EU Negotiations: Agreement Possible by Late Autumn (Online 27 Jul) The Hungarian government is optimistic about resuming talks with the IMF/EU in autumn. On their part, both international negotiators announced to the press on Thursday that the first round of negotiations had taken place in a constructive atmosphere. In view of the fact that the two sides agree on the main directions, the government is optimistic about reaching a rapid agreement in autumn when the talks are scheduled to resume, declared the Minister in charge of the negotiations, Mihály Varga. Although there are some differences of opinion on how to achieve fiscal targets, the sides
agreed that the soundness of macroeconomic projections and fiscal targets for next year must be reinforced. With regard to the financial transaction duty, the minister said that the government would assess its standpoint and if it proves necessary, would review the issue. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán called the IMF/EU negotiations encouraging at a press conference held on July 18. The following day, when meeting with the National Association of Entrepreneurs and Employers (VOSZ) he added, the government's task is to negotiate an acceptable deal. In his Friday interview on the regular morning show called 180
Minutes (MR1 Kossuth, Hungarian public radio) he expressed his satisfaction with the talks by saying that there was wide agreement between the sides on what should be done. Upon their return, Deputy Director of the External Relations Department of the IMF David Hawley announced at a press briefing in Washington that the discussions with Hungary were held in a constructive manner. For its part, the European Commission declared that it welcomed the Hungarian government’s commitment to further fiscal consolidation and agreed with it on the need to continue structural reforms aiming at enhancing growth and employment.
EU a ppr ov e d t wo H unga r ia n pr opos a ls a t de ba t e of da t a pr ot e c t ion r e f or m (Online 25 Jul) The informal meeting of the Council of the European Union and the European Commission, Home and Justice Affairs Council held in Nicosia has adopted two Hungarian proposals related to the EU’s data protection reform, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Public Administration and Justice Tibor Navracsics announced. At the first round of the session discussing the concept presented by the European Commission in January for the review of the regulation of data protection in the EU, Hungary proposed that the administrative burdens of small and medium-sized businesses should be eased. “The proposal of the Commission originally contained a number of regulations that would have imposed increased administrative obligations on small and medium-sized businesses from a data protection viewpoint. We
suggested that we should adopt a differentiated approach to the various economic players from the respect of data protection and, if possible, the Commission should develop a less stringent solution for small and medium-sized businesses”, Tibor Navracsics said. Budapest also proposed that the EU should introduce a risk-based regulation; in other words, upon the establishment of data protection obligations, the rules should not focus on the size of the business but on the sensitivity of the information managed, Tibor Navracsics said, stressing that the vast majority of the Member States were in favour of this proposal. By the Minister’s account, Hungary agreed that the prospective regulations should be sensitive to features specific to the individual nations. Following the amendments, the de-
bate on the data protection reform will be followed by further rounds in the autumn, and as expected, after the EU Presidency of Cyprus, Ireland, too, will continue to discuss the issue during its EU Presidency. First-round talks were also held with respect to the freezing and confiscation of proceeds of crime within the EU, during the course of which the parties laid down theoretical positions. Hungary “is in favour of the proposal that permits the introduction of rules regarding non-convictionbased confiscation”, however, we insist that these should be introduced within the framework of regulations that “feature elements of guarantee similar to criminal proceedings”, Tibor Navracsics stated, and added that there are, at this point in time, major differences on this issue between the Member States.
(Online 24 "We Jul) held have extremely successful talks with the Irish Minister on the future of the Common Agricultural Policy; two the countries are in agreement on most issues", said Minister for Rural Development Sándor Fazekas following his meeting in Budapest Irish with Minister for photo: Gergely Botár Agriculture, Fisheries Food and S i m o n Coveney. Irish "The Presidency of the European Union scheduled for the first half of 2013 will play a significant role in finalising the new from CAP 2014, and so it is especially important that we become acquainted the with viewpoints of photo: Gergely Botár the member of direct support payments available states", said Simon Coveney during in Hungary (Pillar 1) is not expected his meeting with his Hungarian coun- to drop, but funding for rural developterpart. ment would decrease by 10%, and Both ministers stressed that a strong this is unacceptable for Hungary", Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is Sándor Fazekas pointed out. still needed in the future, and that it One of Hungary's priority goals is the is also of great importance that the simplification of the support system budget assigned for the CAP, includ- for small farms, and issue that Ireing the sum of support paid out to land also accepts, but would prefer to farmers, should not decrease. "More leave the decision on this issue to the effort should be taken to simplify and member states. rationalise the CAP, because we feel The two ministers agreed that the that an overly complicated system is emphasised support of young farmtaking form based on the Commis- ers is indispensable both for the fusions recommendation", said Sándor ture of member states and of the Fazekas. whole European Union. According to The two ministers are committed to the Hungarian standpoint, all young the elaboration of a support system farmers should have funds made which is acceptable to both old and available and not just those that are new member states. just starting out in agriculture. "According to current plans, the sum Theoretically, both countries agree
the with greening of the CAP, but stress that find they certain concrete recommendations strict, too such as the regulations regarding the compulsory maintenance of a permanent pasture, and the requirement to cultivate at least three types crops of above a certain territory Acsize. cording to the Hungarian standthe point, ecological target area ratio of 7% is too also high. S i m o n Coveney stressed that a practical and realistic solution be must so found that valuable farmland is not removed from agricultural production. The two ministers called the of level sanctions against farmers who do not perform greening excessive. With relation to its sensitive sectors Hungary needs production-based support, which it plans to increase and expand to include the pork, poultry and tobacco sectors. Ireland is prepared to earmark 5% to support this goal, but is prepared to agree on a compromise solution. The two ministers also agreed to hold detailed professional discussions in future on issues related to the EU Fisheries Policy. At the end of the meeting, Sándor Fazekas wished his Irish counterpart a successful and productive Presidency and expressed his hope that excellent Hungarian wines would also be available at Irish presidential events.
Law enforcement career camp for young Roma (Online 24 Jul) Ministry of Interior organized law enforcement career camp for young Roma for the ninth time in the Adyliget Law Enforcement Secondary School in Nagykovácsi. During the five days the 47 participants have the opportunity to get an insight into the everyday professional activity of police, disaster management, and prosecution staff. Participants can meet policemen,
firemen and visit such interesting places like the obstacle course and the Fire Service of the Ferenc Liszt International Airport. In the course of the entrance exam participants are given the opportunity to get acquainted with the entry requirements and to measure their skills so they can easily decide whether they would like to continue their studies in this field.
Aim of the camp is to attract as many young Roma to the staff of police, fire service and disaster management as possible. The National Roma Self Government (ORÖ) provides all assistance to the youth. The camp is financed by the Ministry of Interior.
Hungarian Exports to China increase 2300% (Online 23 Jul) "Hungary's natural conditions are excellent for agricultural production, all requirements are given for us to provide high quality foods to the Chinese economy, which relies heavily on imports", said State Secretary Endre Kardeván at the opening of his two-day meeting with experts from the Chinese Quarantine Agency at the Hungarian Ministry of Rural Development. The meeting may lead to closer cooperation with the Chinese agency and to the opening of a regional office in Budapest. Agricultural trade between Hungary and China may become more fluent if the Chinese Quarantine Agency responsible for food exports and imports and for food safety opens a regional office in Hungary. This was just one of the topics on the agenda at the meeting today between the Ministry of Rural Development's
State Secretary for Food Chain Control Supervision and Agricultural Economy and the head of the Chinese delegation Lin Wei. "Hungary's natural conditions are excellent, and we would like to supply increased Chinese demand for high quality foods with increased exports", emphasised Endre Kardeván, who also told reporters that the series of meetings that have been held during the past two years have been paving the way for increased food exports. More lively food trade between Hungary and China may open the way for the development of trade between the two countries. 20% of the world population live in China, and supplying the people with food is one of the state's greatest tasks. Chinese agriculture is currently only capable of providing half of the food required to supply its 1.3
billion population, and so the country is in need of continuous imports. This provides the basis for the dynamic development of agricultural cooperation. "Last year, economic cooperation between China and Hungary jumped dramatically compared to earlier figures, achieving a twenty-three fold increase to reach a total of USD 9.2 billion. Only USD 34 million of this was provided by the food trade, which still holds unexploited opportunities", said Lin Wei. "Demand for high quality products has also increased within China. This increasing demand may form the basis for the strengthening of ties between the two countries and for an increase in economic cooperation", said the head of the Chinese delegation.
The v a nda lis a tion of J e wis h t om bs in K a pos v á r is una c c e pta ble
History Full independence was attained in 1960. The country saw
(Online 23 Jul) Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Public Administration and Justice Dr Tibor Navracsics will attend the European Union’s next two-day informal justice and home affairs meeting today and tomorrow which will, this time, be hosted by
PM has held a series of consultations regarding the govt's past two years in office
Hungarian-Irish agreement on future of CAP
This caretaker government was installed in November 1991 to manage the affairs of state until the institutions of the Third Republic were put into place in April 1993. While the economy deteriorated over the course of the transition, certain accomplishments stand out, including the successful conduct of a constitutional referendum; the adoption of key legislation such as the electoral and rural codes; and the holding of several free, fair, and non-violent nationwide elections. Freedom of the press flourished with the appearance of several new independent newspapers. The results of the January 1995 parliamentary election meant cohabitation between a rival president and prime minister; this led to governmental paralysis, Mamadou Tandja, Deposed which provided Col. Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara a rationale to overthrow the Third President of the Republic of Republic in January 1996.
Military rule and the Fourth Republic:
HUNGARY
projects. Szijjártó is also scheduled to meet the head of the local securities market watchdog as well as the foreign and security policy advisor to President Ilham Aliyev.
(Online 23 Jul) The State Secretariat responsible for Religious, Ethnic and Civil Society Relations of the Ministry of Human Resources considers it outrageous and scandalous that anonymous persons vandalized 57 tombs in the Jewish cemetery of Kaposvár on Saturday night. The anonymous perpetrators, through the barbarous and senseless damaging of the tombs, have not just
desecrated the memory of the deceased but also caused enormous damage to the local Jewish community. Therefore, the State Secretariat for Religious, Ethnic and Civil Society Relations of the Ministry of Human Resources deeply condemns this act and trusts that those who committed such a violation of human dignity will be caught by the policy as swiftly as possible.
The government will continue to step up as firmly as possible against all kinds of extremist, racist and anti-Semitic manifestations and shall make every effort necessary to suppress those spiteful voices that are incompatible with European norms and to protect every citizen from such attacks.
PM holds consultations with Roma leaders (Online 23 Jul) Prime Minister Viktor Orbán continued his two-week long consultation series on Monday at the National Roma Self-Government (ORÖ). President of the National Roma Self Government Flórián Farkas, Minister of Human Resources Zoltán Balog, State Secretary in Charge of the Prime Minister's Office János Lázár and Member of Parliament József Varga, as well as the leaders of the National Roma Self-Government all
took part at the consultation, the Prime Minister’s press chief Bertalan Havasi announced in a communiqué. The parties reviewed the implementation of the cooperation agreement between the Government and the Roma Self-Government concluded in 2011 and determined common tasks for the next two years. Following the consultation, the Prime Minister said at a press conference that the endeavour of integrating 55.5 million Hungarian taxpayer citi-
zens into the labour market also necessitated the participation of the Roma population. He also noted that the involvement of the Roma SelfGovernment in decision-making on the Roma community has not been fully accomplished thus far, and so the government intends to set up a committee to evaluate the accomplishment of tasks related to the Roma people on a quarterly basis with the participation of the President of the Roma Self-Government.
Hungarian Product Regulations may come into force on September 1 (Online 20 Jul) "In future, the terms "Hungarian Produ c t " , Domestic Product" and "Domestic a l l y Processed Product" may be included on the labels of foods on a voluntary basis. The use of these categories will not be compulsory, but anyone who includes Photo: Csaba Pelsőczy the term Hungarian Product on his goods must conform to regulations", stated Sándor Fazekas at the producers market held under the arcade of the Ministry of Rural Development of Friday. The Ministerial Decree will regulate the terms and conditions under Photo: Csaba Pelsőczy which these must have been caught in domestic three categories may be included on waters and wild game need to have the packaging of foods. been hunted in Hungary. The Hungarian Product classifica- The term Domestic Product may be tion, or any other statement that used on foods if at least 50 percent claims the food is of Hungarian ori- of its ingredients are Hungarian and gin, may only be included on goods every single step of processing has if it has been produced in Hungary been performed in Hungary. using Hungarian ingredients. As The third category is Domestically such, plant-based foods must have Processed Products and includes been cultivated in Hungary, plants foods that are processed in Hungary that grow in the wild must have been but whose ingredients primarily origcollected, treated and packaged in inate from imports. Hungary. Animals used in animal- The Ministry of Rural Development based products must have been born does not specify the use of a compulhere and reared and processed sory trademark or logo to represent within the country's borders; fish the three categories, and the Ministry
does not plan to introduce logos or certification trademarks, but encourages the use of civil trademarks that comply with regulations. Consumers increasingly search for Hungarian products in the shops. Demand for Hungarian foods is increasing, but cons u m e r s often find it difficult to find what they are looking for among the different labels and markings, and for this reason the Ministry prepared the Ministerial Decree "on the use of certain voluntary differe n t i a l markings on foods" last year. The draft regulation serves to provide better information for consumers. In compliance with EU regulations, the Ministry of Rural Development sent the draft of the Hungarian Product Act to Brussels at the end of last year requesting completion of the notification process. The European Union took exception to some points of the document, but this week the Government decided that the new regulations are now fit to pass the EU test and so the regulations will now be introduced onto the Hungarian market.
Prime MinisterViktor Orbán meets with Jenő Szász (Online 26 Jul) Prime Minister Orbán Viktor received Jenő Szász, the President of the Hungarian Civil Union in his office today. They discussed recent political happenings and the status of Hungarians in Romania and they also touched upon the forth-
coming referendum against Traian Băsescu, which is to take place this weekend. Jenő Szász made it clear that it is in the interests of the Hungarian people in Transylvania and of the whole Romanian nation that the coup d’état against Băsescu should
not be successful. Therefore, he called on voters to boycott the referendum. Viktor Orbán underlined that the European People’s Party is unanimously and resolutely backing President Băsescu and is providing him with their full support.