Stories about Eastern & Central Europe from January, 2012
Macedonia: Policeman Who Beat Young Man to Death Gets 14 Years
On January 16, Igor Spasov, the police officer suspected of beating a young man to death during the celebration of election victory in June 2011, received a sentence of 14 years in prison. Filip Stojanovski reports.
Russia: Security Services Put Pressure on Parents of the Protest Group Moderator
Ilya Klishin, creator of the Facebook groups that organized Russians to participate in Bolotnaya [ru] and Sakharov protest demonstrations, wrote [ru] that his mother had received a call from FSB (Federal Security Services) and his father was summoned to the local police department. Later he added [ru] that he might...
Russia: Echo of Moscow Under Fire
Streetwise Professor discusses Putin's recent critique against the Russian independent radio station Echo of Moscow.
Russia-US: Reviewing the Jackson-Vanik Act
Edward Lozansky at Russia Blog argues that the US Jackson-Vanik Act – denying Russia Most Favoured Nation trade status – should be aborted in view of Russian accession to the World Trade Organization.
Russia: Mafia State Review
Kelly Hignett of The View East reviews Luke Harding's Russia-critical book Mafia State on his dire experiences as a foreign correspondent in Russia.
Ukraine: Tormenting Trial
LEvko of Foreign Notes criticizes the ongoing trial against former Ukrainian Interior Minister, Yuri Lutsenko, as procedures display an abnormal amount of legal irregularities.
Russia-US: Receiving A New US Ambassador
Eric of The Pipeline summarizes comments on the reception in Moscow of new US Ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul.
Romania: Towards A European Spring?
Gabriela Ionita of Power&Politics World summarizes ongoing anti-government protests in Romania, draws parallels to the Arab spring, and asks if this is the start of a European wave of revolutions.
Russia: Line to a Drug Dealer in Novosibirsk
YouTube user Pepsick80 publishes a video [ru] of a drug dealer's selling point in Novosibirsk (city in Siberia). Several tens of cars and drug users standing in the line to buy drugs can be seen on the video. The voice behind the camera is utterly surprised and angry that there's...
Russia: Oligarchs Day in Court
John Helmer of Dances With Bears accounts for the legal battle over business interests between Russian business tycoons Boris Berezovsky and Roman Abramovich, which is about to be finalised by the London High Court.
Russia-US: Protest Against the SOPA/PIPA Bills
Windows to Russia writes about the Russian Pirate Party's protest demonstration yesterday against the US SOPA/PIPA-bills outside the US Embassy in Moscow, and how they argue that this might affect Russian Internet freedom.
Russia: Underwater Fire
Dmitry Gorenburg of Russian Military Reform notes yet another fire onboard a Russian submarine, putting naval safety procedures further in question.
Russia: Kremlin Crisis Management
Ania Viver of Foreign Policy Blogs posts an interesting analysis on the Kremlin's attempts at calming down popular protests against the Russian leadership, and tries to explain why they fail in their crisis management.
Russia: Foreign Ministry Critique of Human Rights Violations
Finrosforum argues against a report from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which criticizes neighbouring countries for human rights violations.
Ukraine: Poisonous Politics
LEvko of Foreign Notes addresses how reports about the possible poisoning of jailed opposition politician and ex-PM, Yulia Timoshenko, proliferate and remind people of the scars poison left on former president president Yushchenko.
Ukraine: Trial By Jury Underway
Odessablog's Blog writes about an upcoming government bill on a new criminal procedure code for Ukraine, which would long overdue introduce the constitutionally guaranteed right to trial by jury into the country's legal system.
Hungary: Culture Purge Proceeds
Hungarian Watch reports how yet another figurehead of Hungarian culture, György Szabó, has been ousted by authorities as director of the Trafó House of Contemporary Arts, making him yet another in an increasing row of deposed cultural representatives.
Romania: “A Tsunami” of Protests Against Austerity Cuts and Corruption
The Romanian online community is trying to explain why people have taken to the streets all over the country, what the authorities' response was and what the outcome of the protests might be. Oana Maria Dan reports.
Slovakia: TV Show on Corruption Cancelled
The Slovak public TV channel STV cancelled [sk] a scheduled live talk show on the alleged widespread corruption of 2005-2006 [en], which involved many of the country's past and present politicians. Head of RTVS (Radio and TV Slovakia) said [sk] that broadcasting such a program, produced by an external producer...
Russia: Obama's McFaul Sworn in as U.S. Ambassador
President Obama's closest adviser on affairs of state of the Former Soviet Union and architect of the 'reset' in the U.S.-Russia relations, Michael McFaul, has officially replaced President Bush's appointment as the United States' Ambassador to Russia.
Macedonia: Hoax About Facebook and Google SOPA Blackout
Macedonian blogs and independent sites IT.com.mk, Fail.mk, and Radio MOF [all mk] attempt to debunk the misinformation copy-pasted by a number of local commercial media (employing professional journalists) that Facebook, Google, Yahoo and other sites will join SOPA blackout, probably based on incompetent translation of a CBS article stating the...
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