By Annick Wijnstra
The first four weeks of the semester have passed and we’re completely back into the game that’s called UCR. Essay deadlines, midterm exams and the release of our very own first print edition of the Spring semester are drawing near. So much to do, and so little time to catch up with current affairs. Section editor Annick is back again with your weekly fix of news.
Grexit?
After numerous bailout packages amounting to €240 billion, Greece is still struggling. With a debt payment coming up in July of €7.4 billion, unrest is growing. The measures taken to ensure that the debts will be payed are highly controversial and has reawakened talks about Greece leaving the Euro. For more information, click here.
Fake news on the rise
By now, we are all familiar with the idea of fake news, and while it may seem like another excuse used by trump, the problem is real. In Europe, there is an influx of fake news about the EU, causing a decline in the peoples trust in the European Union. Especially with election in France, Germany, and the Netherlands around the corner, this destabilisation of trust can be detrimental to the political stability. If you want to read the entire article, please click here.
No deal
Unilever, an Anglo-Dutch consumer goods company owning over 400 brands, has refused a take over from Kraft Heinz. If the takeover would have happened, it would have been the second largest corporate deal in history with a bid of $115 billion. According to inside sources, Unilever made it clear that there was no chance of sealing the deal. Click here if you want to read more.
Skipping state
In the month after the start of the Trump administration (how has it only been a month?!?), the state department has been passed over. Secretary of State Tillerson hasn’t been in the news, he was absent from the White House when foreign leaders were there. But the most noticeable change has been the lack of daily press briefings. Ever since the 1950’s, the state department has had daily press briefings in which national and international press could ask any questions that they might have. Well, not anymore. For the entire article, click right here.
Coral bleaching
Colourful, bright and full of life. That is what I think of when I think of coral. However, global warming has destroyed that image. The great barrier reef (Australia) has been struck hard. Over the entirety of the reef, 22% of the corals are dead. If you need a concrete number, that is 75,768 square kilometres, roughly the size of the Czech republic. Although bleaching is not uncommon, the current bleaching event is the longest and most widespread ever. If you want to read more, click here.
No more Euro?
Dutch politics is looking into the future of the Euro as the dutch main currency. CDA politician Omtzigt called for the council’s creation because of the low interest rates on savings accounts and the legality of the ECB’s bond purchasing programme. The debate will start after the elections on March 15th. For more information, click here.
Bon voyage
Guatamalan authorities have banished members of Women on Waves. The Dutch group offers free abortions in countries where it is illegal to get one. How do they do this? They come in by boat, and preform these abortions in international waters, where they are under dutch law, as it is a dutch organisation. This allows for save and legal abortions. In the past week, the ship has been blocked by army troops, which made it impossible to get on and off the ship. Click here if you want to read more.
Annick Wijnstra, Class of 2017, is a literature and history major from the Netherlands.
