Politics
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Mexico Senate approves a registry for parents who don’t pay for alimony. They will be banned from leaving the country
To solve the issue of divorced parents who don't pay for alimony for their children, Mexico will create a registry and a certificate that will be required for a number of procedures.
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Belarus expands death penalty to military and civil servants convicted of treason
Belarus expanded the death penalty to all military and public administration staff convicted of treason against the State. Belarus is the only country in Europe still applying capital punishment.
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French citizenship comes up in Serbia in a political argument over patriotism
The French citizenship of a Serbian politician has been exposed by the prime minister of Serbia Ana Brnabić in an argument to defend criticism of nationalist Serbian politicians in light of a normalization agreement with Kosovo. An ultranationalist claimed Ms. Brnabić was Croatian as a way to undermine her legitimacy and patriotism.
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South Korea seeks to improve ties with Japan with a plan for compensating victims of forced labor
South Korea released a plan for compensating Korean victims of forced labor under Japanese occupation. By not seeking reparation from the Japanese companies, relations between the two countries are expected to improve amid concerns about regional security with North Korea.
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Brazil announced tax on crude oil exports to mitigate the sensitive issue of ending fuel tax exemptions domestically
The government of Brazil announced a tax on crude oil exports as it aims to compensate for taxes of fuel waived by Jair Bolsonaro last year that are only partially applied again. The matter is politically sensitive.
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Ordered trains in Spain too wide for tunnels, secretary of State and head of rail operator step down
Spain ordered new trains for the provinces of Cantabria and Asturias but they would have been too wide for some old tunnels. The head of Renfe and the secretary of State for Transport stepped down as a consequence of the mistake.
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Number of declarations of European Parliament members attending paid-for events soared since Qatargate, according to Transparency International EU
The number of declarations from members of the European Parliament disclosing events paid for by third parties has never been so high in three and a half years since the Qatargate broke out in December.
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Northern Ireland organ donation law blocked by political stalemate sent to UK parliament
An organ donation law in Northern Ireland set to make all people potential organ donors and inspired by Dáithí Mac Gabhann, a 6-year-old waiting for a heart transplant, is blocked by a local political stalemate over Northern Ireland protocol.
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South Korea’s Ministry of Education changes college funding criteria to curb the ‘invasion of liberal arts’
The ministry of Culture of South Korea relased new criteria to grant funds to high education facilities as an attempt to curb the 'invasion of liberal arts'. The high school exam acting as the entry test in top universities favors science students.
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In Germany, the Free Democratic Party calls again to make English used in all public offices
Germany faces a shortage of skilled workers and the Free Democratic Party advocates for public administration to be more welcoming to workers who don't speak German with the use of English. It's not that simple.
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Moldova Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita resigned
Moldova Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita announced her resignation on February 10. President Maia Sandu appointed the secretary general of the Supreme Security Council Dorin Recean as the candidate to become the new prime minister.
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Pakistan restores access to Wikipedia after a ban for ‘sacrilegious’ content
Pakistan Prime Minister ordered the restoration of access to Wikipedia in the country after it was blocked for a few days because it included "sacrilegious" content.
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Japan government plans to raise the age of consent from 13 to 16
In Japan, a bill is being worked on to substantially amend the penal code related to sex crimes. The age of consent for sexual intercourse could be raised from 13 to 16 years old.
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Mexican National Guard required to record arrests but not to notify the police, the Supreme Court rules
The National Guard of Mexico, the army group with national police functions, needs to register the arrests they make, but don't need to notify the police about them the Supreme Court rules. Human rights defenders criticize the military opacity.
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German Constitutional Court invalidates 2018 law that increased state funding for political parties by 15%
The Constitutional Court of Germany ruled that the 15% increase of overall state funding for political parties and decided by politicians in 2018 was unconstitutional.
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Guatemala Attorney General’s office wants to arrest the Colombian Minister of Defense
Guatemala Attorney General's office seeks the arrest of its former head along with Iván Velásquez Gómez, the current minister of Defense of Colombia. The Special Prosecutor against Impunity accuses the minister of being connected to the Odebrecht corruption scandal.
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Ruling political party of Slovenia, Freedom Movement, decided to leave Twitter
The leading political party of Slovenia, Freedom Movement, left Twitter saying they realized they didn't need to use the platform when their account was locked. It also considers Twitter is used too much to deepen polarization and hate speech.
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During official defense visit, South Korea President wears for the first time sunglasses received as gift from U.S. President Biden
Yoon Suk Yeol wore sunglasses offered by the United States President Joe Biden when he came to Seoul back in May. Mr Yoon was on an official visit to the defense industry as he plans to boost exports.
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Colombia President ready to expropriate private properties to relocate families affected by harsh winter and heavy rains
The president of Colombia instructed the use of a law that enables acquisition and expropriation of private properties in order to relocate families because of the intense rainfall caused by El Niña that lead to the declaration of a state of national disaster.
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Why the Greek minister of Foreign Affairs didn’t want to get off the plane in Tripoli
Nikos Dendias, the Greek minister of Foreign Affairs decided to stay on the plane in Tripoli because he didn't want to meet the minister of Foreign Affairs of Libyan interim government who came at the airport.
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Convicted former Malaysia PM can claim back seized Richard Mille watches, Hermès handbags and jewelry after High Court ruling
The former prime minister of Malaysia Najib Razak, convicted in the 1MDB corruption case, can claim back the thousands of seized jewelry pieces, watches and handbags as the prosecution failed to prove they came from illegal activities, according to a Malaysian court.
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Elected French-Romanian politician in Bucharest accused of conflict of interest for a project against corruption
Clotilde Armand, mayor of a sector in Bucharest municipality, is suspected by the National Integrity Agency of conflict of interest for having appointed herself manager of, and receiving compensation for, a project funded by the European Union meant to reduce corruption.
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Bolivia officials meet in the hope to find an agreement on the date of the census and end social tensions
Officials and leaders of Bolivia gather with the hope to find a solution on a date for the next census which has been the source of social protests. The date of the census will define resource distribution and political representation across the country.
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Facing resignations of public employees, Vietnam plans to raise the salary index by 21%
With almost 40,000 public employees who resigned in two and a half years, especially in healthcare and education, Vietnamese authorities want to increase the public salary index by 21 percent.
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Norway’s second largest airport closed for 2 hours after a drone alert in a tense security context
The airport of Bergen Flesland closed for two hours after several observations of drone flying in the area. In a tense security context given Russia-Ukraine conflict, Norwegian authorities are on the lookout.
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Investigations open for the use of spyware Pegasus by Mexico, but not on the current government despite recent accusations
Mexico was a big client of the spyware Pegasus and two investigations are open for its use in the previous government. But there is no investigation against the current administration despite recent reports Pegasus is still being used.
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The ‘ambitious’ plan of the Netherlands to reduce nitrogen emissions with the buy-out of hundreds of farms
The Netherlands is trying to reduce its nitrogen emissions between unsuccessful measures and distrust among farmers. The latest plan is to buy out the largest nitrogen emitters, mostly hundreds of farms.
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Congress of Peru denies President Pedro Castillo a trip to Europe
Led by opposition parties, the Congress of Peru denied President Pedro Castillo a trip to Europe.
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Australia plans to repatriate women and children from Syria
The government of Australia plans to repatriate at least 20 women and 40 children from camps in Syria according to media reports. The previous government was wary of doing so arguing threats to security.
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Norway wants to raise tax on renewable energy and salmon, profits from natural resources
The coalition government of Norway proposes to raise taxes on its aquaculture and renewable energy industries which make profits from natural resources, Norway's "common property". Unusually, Norway has a deficit in the next year's budget.
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Romania is considering Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system, potentially the first European client. Like in 2018?
Defense Minister of Romania has confirmed his country is considering acquiring the Iron Dome technology, Israel's cutting-edge air defense system. It would be a first in Europe, but their interest in the Iron Dome isn't that new.
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Border reopening between Colombia and Venezuela, a new step in relations between neighbors
Colombia and Venezuela reopened their border closed for seven years mostly because of political differences. The election of left-wing Gustavo Petro at Colombia's presidency started a change in diplomatic relations with Venezuela.
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No refrigerators in office, work from home, closing school premises. Slovakia considers potential energy savings during winter
As winter is coming and energy prices are soaring, Slovakia's administration has been considering various ways to save energy in public buildings.
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Norway MPs had a remuneration freeze in 2021. This year’s increase will most likely offset it
Members of Parliament of Norway were supposed to freeze their remuneration. But they will eventually have a raise, not only for 2022 but for 2021 also.
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A Russian politician submitted a bill to revoke the recognition of Lithuania’s independence
A Russian politician proposed a draft bill to repeal Russia's recognition of the independence of Lithuania.
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov unable to fly to Serbia
The foreign minister of Russia Sergei Lavrov cancelled his visit to Serbia because Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Montenegro closed their airspace to the Russian official. The visit was unlikely since the beginning.
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Hungary excludes cars registered abroad from state-controlled fuel prices
Hungary has decided that its state-controlled fuel prices will only be available to Hungarians. Cars registered abroad will pay the full price.
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British ambassador summoned by Indonesia because of an LGBT+ flag
Indonesia expressed its disappointment to the U.K. ambassador in Jakarta after the embassy raised the rainbow flag to support LGBT+ rights.
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Germany with a ticket at 9 euros per month for all local public transport during summer
On June, July and August, local public transport in Germany will only cost nine euros per month.
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Cuba approved a new penal code adding public disorder as a crime
Cuba updated the list of crimes in its penal code, now tackling environmental crimes, cyber criminality, gender violence but also public disorder
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