Europe’s Scrooges: electoral riggers, corrupt priests, greedy authorities

Though a few of us see the method of Christmas as a possibility to be kinder and nicer to everybody round us, most of the individuals in energy act as real-life impersonations of Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol’s character Ebenezer Scrooge, an eponym for greed. But, journalists throughout Southeast Europe play the function of the three ghosts, revealing the previous, current, and future repercussions of those Scrooges’ egocentric actions on society.

In Serbia, the place Aleksandar Vučić’s ruling get together SNS gained the snap parliamentary elections held on seventeenth of December, the every day Danas reported a number of election day rigging makes an attempt, like buses with electors coming from Bosnia, votes counted in a pub, and, as Serbia Towards Violence coalition introduced, “double lists, lists of secure votes on the polling station, theft of ballots, deceased individuals within the voter lists, inserting two ballots, group voting…”

Shifting on to neighbouring Romania, a priest whistleblower helped investigative journalist Alex Nedea from Recorder floor a bribe and authority abuse community involving tens of thousands and thousands of euros and linking governmental establishments to the Romanian Orthodox Church. The investigation, which attracted over 1 million views on YouTube alone, is predicated on flagrant discussions with politicians and extremely ranked clergymen caught on hidden digicam by the whistleblower. On the fifth of December, following the journalistic investigation, the Nationwide Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) introduced the Archbishop of Tomis was put beneath legal investigation for purchasing affect.

In the meantime, in an opinion piece printed by the every day Instances of Malta, hospital chairman and former politician Josie Muscat accused governmental authorities of abandoning residents and remodeling Malta “from a marvel to a monster” by allowing “overdevelopment” and lots of “high-rise buildings” due to their greed for cash.

One other sort of abuse of energy occurred in Greece, the place the Municipality of Alexandroupolis refused to display a movie by a Palestinian director. As reported by the Greek every day Efimerida ton Syntakton, the Alexandroupolis Peace Committee acknowledged that “the municipal authority is recognized with the road of the federal government, which desires to impose silence on each voice and each group that dares to defend the simply battle of the Palestinian individuals and opposes the involvement of Greece in plans and wars that don’t have anything to do with the actual pursuits of our individuals, whereas on the similar time placing the lives of all of us in danger.”

In addition to corruption and greediness, governments can damage society with their incompetence. For instance, Moldovan journalist Victoria Borodin from Ziarul de Garda’s (RO) investigative newsroom uncovered a personal firm on the sting of chapter that exploits fuel reserves with out having a license or an settlement with the state. In Moldova, the corporate serves about 700 customers.

One other proof of top-level incompetence comes from the Turkish every day Cumhuriyet, whose journalist Murat Agirel concluded that “even if you happen to defraud a whole bunch of individuals of 900 million lira and it’s confirmed, you can not keep in jail.” This comment adopted the journalist’s evaluation of the fraudulent Fortress Hawk firm, which stole the cash of many traders after promising them a ten% month-to-month ROI. Murat Şahin, one of many primary males behind the corporate, was arrested as a result of he defrauded hundreds of individuals with guarantees of excessive income and curiosity. Nevertheless, after being despatched to Muratlı Jail, he was later launched.

On the identical subject

Ziarul de Gardă | 5 December | RO

Earlier than the European Parliament determined to begin accession talks with Moldova, Ukraine, and Bosnia, Moldova made one other step away from Russia, confirms Ziarul de Gardă. The “Saint Hierarch Nicholas” Church in Chisinau just lately disaffiliated from the Metropolitanate of Moldova, which was beneath the Russian Patriarchate, and has joined the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia. The choice to modify again to the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia was made resulting from historic causes and the improper placement of the church beneath the Metropolitanate of Moldova. The transfer follows issues raised by Metropolitan Vladimir concerning the monetary state and perceived pro-Russian stance of the Moscow-subordinate Metropolitanate of Moldova. Because of this, quite a few clergymen have left the Metropolitanate of Moldova to affix the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia.

Tanja Rudež | Jutarnji Checklist | 7 December | HR

Croatian every day Jutarnji Checklist talked with researcher Dr. Mario Novak, co-author of a brand new research that delved into the genetic historical past of the Balkans. The research, which analyzed the genomes of 146 historic people, discovered that Croats and Serbs have the strongest Slavic genetic imprint. The analysis additionally uncovered proof of mobility within the Balkans throughout Roman rule, with people from distant areas, together with Africa, settling within the space.

Solomon | 1 December | EN

This investigation coordinated by Lighthouse Reviews, sheds gentle on a harsh actuality confronted by migrants looking for to succeed in Europe by way of the Balkan route. Regardless of the rise in border controls and surveillance, the variety of migrants trying the journey has risen considerably. This has led to a surge in deaths, with many our bodies being buried unidentified in mass graves. The investigation discovered that households of the deceased are sometimes compelled to bribe officers to acquire data or entry to the our bodies of their family members. “They solely know cash. They aren’t fascinated with human life,” a 29-year-old asylum seeker mentioned. 

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