Spain's Supreme Court endorses imprisonment of ex-IMF chief

October 03, 2018

MADRID (AP) — Spain's Supreme Court has confirmed a 4½-year prison sentence for former International Monetary Fund head Rodrigo Rato for misusing a Spanish bank's corporate credit card. A judge of the lower court will now need to order the imprisonment in the next few days of Rato, who was IMF chief from 2004 to 2007 and previously a leading figure in Spain's conservative Popular Party and Spanish economy minister.

The National Court last year convicted Rato of unlawful misappropriation of funds during his 2010-12 leadership of Bankia, a bank that was later bailed out. Rato had denied that the credit cards were used for irregular and undeclared expenses.

Rato received the severest sentence among the 64 defendants in the case.

Catalan leader issues ultimatum over independence vote

October 02, 2018

MADRID (AP) — Catalan regional president Quim Torra issued an ultimatum to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Tuesday over the wealthy northeastern region's future. It was promptly rejected by the Spanish government.

Torra indicated he could deny Sanchez the votes he needs to approve the national budget in Spain's parliament unless the government proposes by next month an independence referendum in Catalonia. Failure to get a budget passed could spell the end of Sanchez's four-month-old administration and bring a snap election.

Torra, a leading secessionist, said in a speech in Barcelona that Catalan separatist parties won't back Sanchez in parliament if their demand for a vote on self-determination is not met. "Our patience ... is not endless," Torra said. "If a proposal to exercise self-determination in an agreed, binding and internationally recognized way is not on the table by November, the independence movement cannot guarantee for Mr. Sanchez any kind of stability in parliament."

Madrid rejected Torra's demand later Tuesday. "The Spanish government does not accept ultimatums," government spokeswoman Isabel Celaa said, urging Torra to open a dialogue between Catalans who favor independence and those who oppose it.

"The proposal that unites is coexistence, not independence," she said. The ultimatum was aimed directly at Sanchez's growing predicament over his center-left Socialist government's spending plans for 2019.

The minority government holds just 84 of the 350 seats in the country's lower house. That means it is relying on the expected support of other parties, including those supporting Catalan secession, to pass its state budget.

Catalan separatists clash with police as tensions mount

September 29, 2018

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Clashes between Catalan separatists and police in Barcelona left 14 people injured and led to six arrests Saturday as tensions boiled over days before the anniversary of the Spanish region's illegal referendum on secession, which ended in violent raids by security forces.

Separatists tossed and sprayed colored powder at police officers, filling the air with a thick rainbow cloud and covering anti-riot shields and police vans. Some protesters threw eggs and other objects and engaged with the police line, which used batons to keep them back.

The clashes erupted after local Catalan police intervened to form a barrier when a separatist threw purple paint on a man who was part of another march of people in support of Spanish police demanding a pay raise. Officers used batons to keep the opposing groups apart.

There were more confrontations as the separatists tried to enter Barcelona's main city square where 3,000 people supporting Spanish police had ended their march. Separatists shouted "Get out of here, fascists!" and "Independence!" at the Spanish police supporters, who responded by shouting "We will be victorious!" and "Our cause is just!"

Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau pleaded for peace when the first scuffles broke out. "I make a call for calm," Colau told Catalunya Radio. "This city has always defended that everyone can exercise their rights to free speech."

The Catalan police told The Associated Press that the six arrests were made on charges of aggressions against police officers. The investigation was continuing. One police officer was hurt, although it was not immediately clear if the officer was among the 14 people reported by health authorities as needing medical treatment. Three were taken to hospital while the others were attended to on the street.

There were ugly episodes between members of the opposing groups. An AP photographer saw a group of several people who had come to support the Spanish police being chased by a mob of around 100 separatists, some of whom tried to kick and trip the supporters before they could reach the safety of local police. Separately, a woman punched a man who supports Catalan secession in the face before police could separate them.

The pro-police march had originally planned to end in another square home to the regional and municipal government seats but 6,000 separatists, according to local police, gathered in the square to force regional authorities to alter the march's route. Some separatists arrived the night before and camped out in the square.

"The separatists are kicking us out," said national police officer Ibon Dominguez, who attended the march. "They are kicking the national police and Guardia Civil out of the streets of our own country."

The police march was organized by the police association JUSAPOL, which wants Spain's two nationwide police forces, the national police and Civil Guard, to be paid as much as Catalonia's regional police.

JUSAPOL holds marches in cities across Spain, but Saturday's march in Barcelona comes two days before Catalonia's separatists plan to remember last year's referendum on secession held by the regional government despite its prohibition by the nation's top court.

That Oct. 1 referendum was marred when national police and Civil Guard officers clashed with voters, injuring hundreds. JUSAPOL spokesman Antonio Vazquez told Catalan television TV3 that while the march's goal was to demand better salaries, they also wanted to support the national police and Civil Guard officers who had been ordered to dismantle the referendum.

"The national police and Civil Guard agents who acted last year were doing their duty and now they are under pressure and we have to support them," Vazquez said. Last year's police operation that failed to stop the referendum has become a rallying call for Catalonia's separatists, who point to it as evidence of Spain's mistreatment of the wealthy region that enjoys an ample degree of self-rule.

"Outrageous! They shouldn't be here. They came here to hit us a year ago and today they want to make an homage to that. It is pathetic," said secession supporter Montse Romero. Pro-secession lawmaker Vidal Aragones of the extreme left CUP party called the police march an "insult to the Catalan people."

While Catalonia has seen huge political rallies take place without incident for several years, two weeks ago police had to intervene to keep apart rallies by Catalan separatists and Spanish unionists in Barcelona, the region's capital.

Catalonia's separatist-led government is asking Spain's central authorities to authorize a binding vote on secession. Last year's illegal vote led to an ineffective declaration of independence by Catalonia's parliament that gained no international recognition and triggered a months-long takeover by central authorities.

Polls and recent elections show that the region's 7.5 million residents are roughly equally divided by the secession question.

AP video journalist Renata Brito and AP photographer Daniel Cole contributed to this report.

Ukraine demands access to filmmaker imprisoned in Russia

September 29, 2018

MOSCOW (AP) — Ukraine's Foreign Ministry is demanding that Russia allow consular access to an imprisoned Ukrainian filmmaker who has been on a hunger strike since mid-May. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mariana Betsa made the demand Saturday on Twitter. Russia's penitentiary service said Friday that an unspecified "correction" in Oleg Sentsov's treatment had been ordered; it published a photo of him being examined with a stethoscope.

Betsa also called for allowing Ukrainian doctors to visit Sentsov. The filmmaker is an opponent of Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2015 for conspiracy to conduct terror attacks.

Sentsov denies guilt and has refused to seek a pardon from President Vladimir Putin. His lawyer said this month that Sentsov's health was irreversibly damaged. Prison officials say he is receiving a nutritional formula.

World Economic Forum hosts Balkan leaders in Switzerland

October 02, 2018

GENEVA (AP) — The World Economic Forum's president said Tuesday that the organization's move to bring together leaders from four Western Balkan countries and regional powers aims to fight "complacency" in a region facing lingering tensions on a route used by migrants into Europe.

Borge Brende, a former Norwegian foreign minister, said that lessons from history show that events in the west Balkans tend to have a "huge influence" on the rest of Europe, while pointing to economic opportunities in the region.

"What happens in the Balkans will have huge implications for Europe in the future — and this is too frequently neglected," Brende said in an interview. "What we have learned during the last years is that complacency is not a good idea."

He spoke after the WEF hosted the leaders from Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia, as well as key officials from regional players like Croatia, Germany and Turkey. The leaders announced plans to create a regional center on emerging technologies in the "Fourth Industrial Revolution," cooperate with a WEF cybersecurity center and hold a regional summit next year.

The Geneva-based think tank is best known for the annual Davos gathering in the Swiss Alps.

Romanian ex-prison chief sentenced to 20 years dies in jail

September 26, 2018

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Ion Ficior, who was incarcerated for the deaths of 103 political inmates while in charge of a communist-era labor camp in Romania, has died. He was 90. Ficior died Wednesday at Jilava prison hospital, according to Bianca Filote, spokeswoman for the government Institute for Investigating the Crimes of Communism. The institute began to pursue Ficior and other former prison guards in 2013 in a bid to make them finally accountable for wrongdoing during the communist era, handing over evidence to prosecutors.

Prison hospital spokeswoman Denisa Ene confirmed to The Associated Press that a prisoner, suffering various chronic medical conditions, had died Wednesday morning, but declined to provide further details, citing privacy rules.

Ficior was serving a 20-year sentence there for crimes against humanity. He was imprisoned in March 2017, but denied wrongdoing and said he was merely following orders. But Andrei Muraru, who initiated the investigation of Ficior, said he "showed a complete lack of mercy toward his victims, who endured prolonged suffering, were skeletal inmates, or defenseless elderly people," he told the AP.

"They were subjected to a diabolic program of extermination through exhausting work, hunger and physical torture," said Muraru, now an adviser to President Klaus Iohannis. Ficior was commander at the Periprava labor camp from 1958 to 1963. During his trial, former detainees accused him of beatings, a lack of food and medicine, overwork and unheated cells.

In an interview with the AP in 2013 before he was charged with more than 100 deaths, Ficior claimed "two or three had died" while he was prison commander. Romania had about 500,000 political prisoners under the Communist regime, about one-fifth of whom died while in detention, according to historians. Many were locked up for merely falling afoul of the communist regime. A general amnesty was granted to political prisoners in 1964.

Ficior is survived by a son.

Romania ruling party endorses embattled party chief

September 21, 2018

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania's ruling Social Democratic Party on Friday endorsed its chairman despite his recent conviction for abuse of power. Colleagues had called for Liviu Dragnea to step down, but party members voted in support of Dragnea, who is barred from becoming prime minister because of a 2016 conviction for electoral fraud.

There were conflicting figures about the vote tally Friday, which came after an eight-hour meeting. Dragnea later vowed he would do all he could to "destroy... this odious system" of what he calls "the parallel state," which he thinks has too much power. Those institutions include an anti-corruption movement, Romania's secret services, the anti-corruption prosecutors agency and President Klaus Iohannis, a political rival.

However, Dragnea indicated that he would allow more autonomy for the Romanian government, which has been under party control. In June, Dragnea was convicted of abuse of power in office and sentenced to 3½ years in prison. Party colleagues say he should be considered innocent pending a final ruling.

One ally, Marian Oprisan, said he didn't recognize that conviction, labeling it "political." Despite that conviction and the court case, Dragnea retains a tight grip on the party he has ruled since 2015.

In a letter this week, three leading party officials, including Bucharest mayor Gabriela Firea, urged him to step down. Tensions have grown in the party since an anti-corruption protest directed against the Romanian government last month left 450 people injured.

Romanians have held many anti-corruption protests since the Social Democrats won power in 2016 and embarked on a contentious judicial overhaul that critics say will make it harder to prosecute cases of high-level corruption.

Thousands of Polish police, firefighters march over pay

October 02, 2018

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Thousands of disgruntled police, firefighters and other security workers marched noisily through the Polish capital Tuesday to demand higher pay and more favorable retirement conditions.

Buses carried protesters from across Poland for the march that organizing trade unions said would gather some 15,000 participants, including border and prison guards. With a cardboard coffin labeled "Police" and with horns and whistles they walked to the Presidential Palace where they left a petition asking President Andrzej Duda to support their demands.

Their demands were read out over loudspeakers and some protesters threw firecrackers as they continued to the office of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and rallied there. They are demanding an immediate raise of 650 zlotys (150 euros; $170) and the right to retire after 25 years of service, regardless of age, which is now set at 55 minimum.

Pre-tax monthly earnings in the police range from 2,000 to 4,200 zlotys (470-980 euros; $540-$1,140). Interior Minister Joachim Brudzinski, speaking on state Polish Radio 1 Tuesday, described the situation of the police as "not rich" and said he agreed with many of the demands. He said he has ordered substantial raises as of Jan. 1.

Macedonia: Referendum deepens division over renaming country

October 01, 2018

SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) — Macedonia's government prepared for a political battle Monday to push through a deal with Greece that would ultimately pave the way for NATO membership, after the agreement won overwhelming support in a referendum but with low voter turnout.

The European Union, NATO, U.N. secretary-general and the United States urged the small Balkan nation country to move forward with the next steps required to enact the deal. Macedonia's international partners have been eager to see the country join international institutions, in a region where Russia hasn't been keen on NATO picking up new members.

Final results from Sunday's referendum showed that among the 36.9 percent of registered voters who cast ballots, 91.4 percent supported the deal that would change their country's name to North Macedonia. In return, Greece would drop its longstanding objections to its northern neighbor being considered for NATO membership.

Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, declared the referendum a success and said he would move forward with the next step: seeking a two-thirds majority in the 120-member parliament for required constitutional amendments.

If the amendments do not pass, Social-Democrat Zaev said he would have no choice but to call an early election. Opponents of the deal with Greece, arguing that it undermined national interests, had advocated a voter boycott of the referendum. They seized on Sunday's low turnout as evidence of the agreement's rejection.

In a televised address, Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov, a conservative opponent of Zaev's, described the referendum as a failure and insisted the country deserved to join NATO, and ultimately the European Union, without changing its name.

"Do not try to change this reality. Do not underestimate the sovereign will of the Macedonian people," Ivanov said. "And the reality is that the referendum is unsuccessful." International observers, headed by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, said fundamental freedoms were "respected throughout the campaign" for the referendum.

But Macedonia's State Electoral Commission cast doubt on the result. Commission head Oliver Derkoski said the Macedonian Constitution stipulates a minimum 50 percent turnout for a referendum to be considered binding.

The government has insisted the turnout threshold was not relevant, saying it called the referendum consultatively to provide an indication of popular opinion. It also argued that the outcome was a valid reflection of voters' will, saying the more than 600,000 people who voted in favor of the deal was far more than the number that had voted for any politician in Macedonia's short history.

Macedonia's international partners called for parliamentary support for the deal. "We urge leaders to rise above partisan politics and seize this historic opportunity to secure a brighter future for the country as a full participant in Western institutions," U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said .

EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn tweeted he expected "all political leaders to respect this decision and take it forward with utmost responsibility and unity across party lines." U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the overwhelming support from Macedonians who voted "is important" and urged "all political forces in the country to proceed with implementation," according to a statement from U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq.

Guterres reiterated the U.N.'s commitment "to provide all necessary support, if required" including through his personal envoy and U.N. agencies, Haq said. The Greek government said the low turnout was "troubling," but stressed the importance of the name deal clearing the next major obstacle.

Macedonia's government will spend seven to 10 days seeking the necessary support from lawmakers to move forward with the deal, Defense Minister Radmila Sekerinska said. It could be an uphill battle. "I think it would be very difficult for the prime minister to reach the deal with the opposition lawmakers over the constitutional changes and to continue with the next phase," Political analyst Petar Arsovski said.

"Unfortunately, as opposed to providing closure, the referendum still leaves the country in turmoil ... I think Macedonia is entering into uncertainty and that the crisis will deepen."

Macedonia: Referendum approves name change, but turnout low

October 01, 2018

SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) — A referendum on changing Macedonia's name as part of a deal that would pave the way for NATO membership won overwhelming support Sunday, but low voter turnout highlighted the hurdles that still remain for the Balkan country to join the alliance.

Prime Minister Zoran Zaev had hoped for a strong show of support in the referendum on whether to accept a June deal with Greece changing the country's name to North Macedonia. That would help him with the next step of winning parliamentary support for the required constitutional amendments.

Results from more than 97 percent of polling stations showed 91.3 percent of voters approving the deal. But turnout stood at just 36.8 percent, a far cry from the massive support the government had hoped for.

Opponents to the name change had called for a boycott of the vote and celebrated in the street outside Parliament when turnout figures were announced, chanting slogans and waving flags. Nevertheless, Zaev declared the vote a success.

"The people made a great choice and said 'yes' to our future. It is time for lawmakers to follow the voice of the people and to provide support," he said. "There will be no better agreement with Greece, nor an alternative for NATO and the EU."

Zaev said he would seek to secure the required two-thirds majority of the 120-seat parliament by next week for the constitutional changes. If he fails, he said the only alternative would be to call early elections.

The deal with Greece has faced vociferous opposition from a sizeable portion of the population on both sides of the border, with detractors saying their respective governments conceded too much to the other side and damaged national interests and identity.

The referendum stirred strong interest in the West, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis among a long line of foreign officials who visited Skopje ahead of the vote to urge Macedonians to back the deal.

Russia, however, is not keen on NATO expanding in a part of Europe once under its sphere of influence. Mattis said there was "no doubt" Moscow had funded groups inside Macedonia to campaign against the name change.

In Athens, the Greek foreign ministry noted the "contradictory" result of the referendum — overwhelming approval along with low turnout — and said careful moves were needed to "preserve the positive potential of the deal."

The agreement faces more hurdles before it can be finalized. If the constitutional amendments are approved by Macedonia's parliament, Greece will then also need to ratify it. But Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras faces political problems of his own. His governing coalition partner, right-wing Independent Greeks head Panos Kammenos, has vowed to vote against the deal, leaving Tsipras reliant on opposition parties and independent lawmakers to push it through.

The June agreement aims to resolve a dispute dating from Macedonia's declaration of independence from Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. Greece, arguing its new northern neighbor's name implied territorial ambitions on its own province of the same name, has blocked Macedonia's efforts to join NATO since then.

Under the deal, the former Yugoslav republic would amend its name to North Macedonia and Greece would drop its objections to the country joining NATO. Supporters, led by Zaev, had characterized Sunday's vote as a linchpin of Macedonia's future prosperity, the key to its ability to join international institutions. NATO and EU membership would be a major step for a country that less than two decades ago almost descended into civil war, when parts of its ethnic Albanian minority took up arms against the government, seeking greater rights.

But opponents painted Sunday's vote as a clear failure. "The fact is that the agreement with Greece did not receive a green light," said Hristijan Mickoski, head of the opposition VMRO party. "This today is a defeat not only for the agreement with Greece, but for the crime of those who are in power."

However, the government had called the referendum consultative and non-binding, meaning it could interpret the outcome as a fair reflection of public opinion regardless of how many people voted. If the referendum were binding, the Macedonian Constitution requires a minimum turnout of 50 percent of eligible voters to be valid.

The question posed to voters was: "Are you in favor of membership in NATO and European Union by accepting the deal between (the) Republic of Macedonia and Republic of Greece?" Critics of the name change include President Gjorge Ivanov, who has called the agreement with Greece a "flagrant violation of sovereignty."

Boycott supporters were jubilant. "We don't recognize any other Macedonia but Macedonia. No North Macedonia," said Nevenka Ristovska, who was among opponents of the deal celebrating outside parliament, waving red-and-yellow Macedonian flags.

Ivana Bzganovic and Nicolae Dumitrache in Skopje and Demetri Nellas in Athens, Greece contributed to this report.

Macedonians vote on new country name, future with West

September 30, 2018

SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) — Macedonians were deciding Sunday on their country's future, voting whether to accept a landmark deal ending a decades-old dispute with neighboring Greece by changing their country's name to North Macedonia and paving the way to NATO membership.

The June deal would end a dispute dating from the early 1990s when Macedonia declared independence from Yugoslavia. Greece had argued that use of the name implied territorial ambitions on its own province of the same name, and blocked the country's efforts to join NATO.

But the agreement has faced vocal opposition on both sides of the border. Opponents in Macedonia include the country's president, Gjorge Ivanov, who has called the deal a "flagrant violation of sovereignty." They have called for a boycott of Sunday's referendum.

Voters were confronted with the question: "Are you in favor of membership in NATO and European Union by accepting the deal between (the) Republic of Macedonia and Republic of Greece?" The referendum was called as a consultative, non-binding move. The distinction means the government could take the outcome as a fair reflection of public opinion and act accordingly, regardless of the turnout. Under the country's constitution, a binding referendum would need a minimum turnout of 50 percent to be considered valid.

The campaign has been relatively muted, with most posters favoring the government-led "Yes" campaign. Supporters of the deal, led by Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, have focused on the vote as being the lynchpin of the country's future prosperity, the key to its ability to join NATO and, eventually, the European Union. It would be a major step for a country that less than two decades ago almost descended into civil war, when parts of its ethnic Albanian minority took up arms against the government, seeking greater rights.

Djose Tanevski was among the early voters Sunday in Skopje, the capital. "I came here because of the future of our children, who should have a decent life, a life in a lovely country, which will become a member of the European Union and NATO," he said.

If the "Yes" vote wins, the next step is for the government to amend parts of the country's constitution to ensure it doesn't contain anything that could be considered irredentist against Greece. Only after those changes are approved by parliament does the deal face ratification in Greece.

The referendum has stirred strong interest in the West. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis have been among the top foreign officials heading to Skopje recently to urge its people to vote "Yes."

There's been growing concern over the reach of Russia, which is not keen on NATO expanding in a part of Europe that was once within its sphere of influence. Mattis said there was "no doubt" that Moscow funded groups inside Macedonia to campaign against the name change.

Even if Macedonians vote in favor of the deal, the agreement still faces several hurdles before it can be fully ratified. The constitutional amendments that are required need a two-thirds majority of parliament's 120 members to go through. So far Zaev has pledges of support from 73 — seven short of the required number. A low turnout on Sunday could complicate his task in persuading more lawmakers that the name change agreement with Greece reflects the will of the people.

Once the hurdle of constitutional amendments is overcome, Greece must then ratify the deal. But Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras faces problems of his own. His governing coalition partner, right-wing Independent Greeks head Panos Kammenos, has vowed to vote against the deal in parliament, leaving Tsipras reliant on opposition parties and independent lawmakers to push the deal through.

Ivana Bzganovic in Skopje contributed to this report.

Macedonian president urges voters to skip name change vote

September 27, 2018

SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) — The president of Macedonia strongly urged voters Thursday to abstain from a weekend referendum on changing the country's name to "North Macedonia" to clear its path toward NATO and European Union membership.

President Gjorge Ivanov's comments at the U.N. General Assembly in New York, made hours before the end of campaigning for Sunday's vote, deepened a rift with Prime Minister Zoran Zaev's ruling Social Democrats party, which denounced them as "destructive."

Ivanov, a conservative, said the proposed name change Zaev negotiated with the prime minister of Greece as part of a deal to end a decades-long dispute over the Macedonia name would be a "flagrant violation of sovereignty."

"Do not persuade us to eat this poisonous fruit," he said. "It is high time that the poisonous stem, together with its poisonous fruit, is removed." Greece objects to Macedonia's current name, saying it implies a claim to territory in the Greek province with that name and to the heritage of the birthplace of revered ancient warrior Alexander the Great.

The agreement has divided public opinion in Macedonia and Greece, with opponents saying it offers too much to the other side. Voter turnout in Sunday's referendum is critical, as the result will be valid only if more than 50 percent of Macedonia's 1.8 million registered voters participate. Polls indicate a "yes" vote would prevail, but turnout might fall short.

Western countries strongly back the deal, as Macedonia's NATO accession would limit Russian influence in the Balkans. A series of western officials, including Germany's chancellor, NATO's chief and the U.S. defense secretary, visited Skopje in recent weeks to lobby for strong voter turnout.

"Would they accept interference in their internal affairs, violation of sovereignty and political independence?" Ivanov said of the visiting officials. "Why, then, are we required to accept something that no one in the world would accept?"

Zaev has staked his political future on the "yes" vote prevailing. His party angrily criticized Ivanov's comments. "It is a shame that a person who performs the office of president should serve with untruths, manipulating the public," a party statement issued Thursday said. "It is completely clear that the referendum is for Macedonia's membership in the EU and NATO, with secured and strengthened Macedonian identity."

Macedonia's parliament has ratified the deal with Greece, although Ivanov refused to sign off on it. After the referendum, lawmakers must vote to amend the constitution to reflect the name change. After that, the last step to full implementation of the deal is its ratification by Greece's parliament, which is sharply divided on the issue.

Macedonia gained nationhood after peacefully splitting from the former Yugoslavia in 1991. Police said a student protest against the name change planned for Thursday in Skopje was cancelled.

Prague's fabled astronomical clock returns in former beauty

September 26, 2018

PRAGUE (AP) — Prague's fabled astronomical clock is returning to the Czech capital's picturesque Old Town Square after a complex repair operation restored the medieval landmark to its former glory. The 608-year-old clock, a must-see for many tourists with its hourly moving display of the 12 apostles and other figures, was removed in January for its first major repair since World War II.

With the clock set to resume operations on Friday at 6 p.m. (1600 GMT), here's a look at its history and restoration:

HISTORY

The clock, believed installed in the City Hall's tower in 1410, is unique because it still has its original mechanism.

A major addition came in the 18th century, when the apostles were introduced. Clock master Petr Skala said they were believed to be installed in 1723, during the reign of Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI.

The latest version of the round calendar board — which includes all 365 days of the year, the zodiac signs, the symbols of the 12 months and Prague's coat of arms — was created by Czech artist Josef Manes in 1866.

REPAIR

As a center of the uprising against the Nazi occupying forces in the last days of WWII, Prague's City Hall was a site of fierce battles. Parts of it were irreparably destroyed, and the clock tower was badly damaged during a devastating fire on May 8, 1945.

Skala said the latest restoration efforts aim to comprehensively fix a series of poorly done repairs, mostly from the 20th century.

As the clock has undergone numerous changes since 1410, Skala said the point was not to give it its original, 15th-century look. He said his main task was to make sure the clock's mechanism was as reliable as possible in the future.

As part of the process, his wife Melanie cleaned every single part of it, removing old paints and rust, washing them all in citric acid five times. Metal chains installed after the war were replaced by drums with hemp ropes in the clock's drive, its former feature.

"Chances are it will be functioning for another 600 years," Skala said.

Among the more visible changes are a new version of the clock's 19th-century calendar board, and a new lick of paint for the elaborate astrolabe and the figures. Two tin windows were removed, replaced with new ones made of stained glass in place since the early 20th century.

L.Hainz, a company that has taken part in various repairs of the clock since the 1860s. was involved in the works, ensuring continuity.

LEGENDS

The clock has given rise to some legends and superstitions — including a belief that the entire nation will suffer when it stops running. Another legend might be reason for concern for Skala: anyone who changes the clock or tampers with it will go mad, or die.

Some believed that the clock foretold the record flooding that hit Prague and large parts of the Czech Republic in 2002, when it briefly stopped working shortly before midnight on New Year's Eve 2001. Officials, however, said it was due to a minor malfunction.

Italian government backs down on part of spending plans

October 03, 2018

MILAN (AP) — The Italian government on Wednesday indicated a softening in the public spending plans that have alarmed investors and eurozone partners, saying they would be gradually lowered after 2019.

Economy Minister Giovanni Tria confirmed that the deficit to GDP ratio next year would be higher than agreed by the previous government with the European Commission. But he added "that there would be a gradual reduction in the deficit in successive years."

The remark confirms a report by Corriere della Sera that the 2.4-percent budget deficit in the new spending plan would apply only to next year and not for the three-year spending plan. Premier Giuseppe Conte's office also released a statement late Tuesday saying that officials were working on a proposal that would "accelerate the decline in the debt-to-GDP relationship over the course of three years."

The government's apparent softening was providing relief to financial markets, where investors are concerned that the planned spike in public spending will harm efforts to reduce its debt pile. The Italian government 10-year bond yield declined, a sign of easing investor concern. And Milan's benchmark stock index, the FTSE MIB, rose by over 1 percent.

Italy's new populist government is boosting spending to meet election promises, namely to offer job seekers a basic income, do away with an unpopular pension reform and lower taxes. But the extra spending is boosting the deficit to levels even higher than Tria initially sought.

Tria told a conference held by the country's main business lobby that the government's economic policies are aimed at reducing the difference in growth between Europe and Italy, which has severely lagged, "and to assure at the same time a constant reduction in the debt-GDP ratio."

"We need vigorous growth, and at the same time increased resilience," Tria said, adding that a boost in investments was a crucial component.

Italy tightens eligibility for migrant protection

September 24, 2018

ROME (AP) — Italy on Monday tightened criteria for migrants receiving humanitarian protection as its populist government deepened its crackdown on those seeking asylum. A new law, in the form of a government decree approved by Premier Giuseppe Conte and his Cabinet, also permits authorities to suspend evaluation of asylum requests for migrants judged "socially dangerous" or are convicted of a crime, before court appeals are exhausted.

"We're not harming any fundamental right," asserted Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, who is driving the crackdown. "If you come into my home and deal drugs, I'll escort you back to where you came from," he told a news conference to unveil the decree.

His right-wing League party, whose popularity has been soaring in recent opinion polls, associates migrants with crime. Humanitarian protection will now only be granted for victims of labor exploitation, human trafficking, domestic violence, natural calamities or those needing medical care as well as to those who performed "deeds of particular civic value," Salvini said, with the latter criterion an apparent reference to heroism.

The premier, who sympathizes with the euroskeptic 5-Star Movement, the government's main partner, indicated that Italian authorities had been too elastic in granting humanitarian protection. "We will continue to assure there is the system of protection, we're just avoiding abuses," said Conte, adding that Italy had been showing "indiscriminate welcome" to asylum hopefuls.

Salvini said roughly a third of those who apply for asylum either receive it or some other special status, notably humanitarian protection. The remaining are eventually issued expulsion orders, but many of them slip away, often to find relatives in Northern Europe.

A large percentage of the rescued migrants are fleeing poverty and aren't eligible for asylum. Through last year, about 600,000 migrants, most of them seeking asylum, landed in Italian ports after they were rescued at sea from boats launched from Libya by human traffickers.

But since Salvini has started denying port entry to private rescue boats, the numbers of arrivals in the last few months have plummeted. The heaviest-plied sea route now for migrant smuggling has shifted to the western reaches of the Mediterranean Sea, with Spain bearing the brunt of arrivals.

On Sunday, the last such boat run by humanitarian organizations and operating in the waters off Libya lamented that it was losing its registration from Panamanian maritime authorities. The maritime authorities have said Italy complained that the captain of Aquarius 2, operated by SOS Mediterranee and Doctors Without Borders, disregarded instructions to return rescued migrants to Libya authorities.

U.N. officials say violence-wracked, largely lawless Libya doesn't qualify as a safe port for rescued migrants. The two humanitarian groups asked France on Monday to allow the 58 migrants aboard Aquarius 2 to disembark in the southern port of Marseille.

In Paris, Francis Vallat, head of SOS Mediterranee France, asked European countries to "find a solution, whatever it is. We can't stop. We don't want to stop. We will only yield to force and constraint."

He told reporters: "We never did anything which was not authorized by Italian authorities." The new Italian government decree, which eventually must be converted into law by Parliament or modified, also provides for stripping Italian citizenship from those convicted of international terrorism, assuming they hold a second citizenship from birth of family origin.

Salvini boasted that the decree slashed the daily pocket money asylum-seekers receive. He didn't say how much they would receive. Doctors Without Borders contended that the decree seemed aimed at further dismantling an "already fragile and precarious" system for asylum-seekers.

The group's Italian mission chief, Anne Garella, expressed concern about the criteria for granting humanitarian protection for medical care. Garella said in a statement that many migrants suffer from "health problems with not easily recognizable symptoms." In particular, she cited torture victims.

U.N. refugee agency officials say many of the migrants have been tortured, beaten or raped in Libyan detention centers before or after attempting crossings to Europe. Another advocacy group, the Italian Refugee Council, or CIR, expressed worry over the decree, including a provision that will put asylum-seekers except minors in new, large government centers, and no longer in smaller accommodations in cities and towns, where migrants could attend language class and other local activities to foster integration.

Samuel Petrequin contributed to this report from Paris.

Greece: 400 asylum-seekers moved out of crowded island camp

September 25, 2018

PIRAEUS, Greece (AP) — About 400 asylum-seekers who had been held in the severely overcrowded Moria migrant camp on the Greek island of Lesbos have arrived in Greece's main port of Piraeus to be transferred to other camps and residences on the mainland.

The asylum-seekers, mainly families from Syria, Afghanistan and African countries, arrived Tuesday onboard an overnight ferry from Lesbos. They are among around 2,000 people whom the government has pledged to move out of Moria, a facility built for 3,100 people but which is at nearly three times capacity.

Charities have slammed conditions in the camp, citing cases of sexual attack, deplorable sanitation and an increase in suicide attempts among residents. The local regional governor has threatened to shut the facility unless the government improves conditions.

Migrant ship in French port waiting for new flag

October 04, 2018

MARSEILLE, France (AP) — A humanitarian group operating a private ship that rescues migrants making the dangerous crossing to Europe through the Mediterranean says it has arrived in the southern port of Marseille.

SOS Mediterranee said Thursday the Aquarius is making a stopover while waiting for a new flag and is "determined to go back to sea as soon as possible." The group urged European governments to find a new flag for the vessel to secure its future after Panama's maritime authority removed the ship's registration.

After five days stuck at sea in bad weather, 58 migrants saved on the Aquarius arrived in Malta over the weekend after being transferred to a Maltese naval vessel. The migrants will eventually be transferred to the four countries agreeing to accept them: France, Germany, Spain and Portugal.

EU lawmakers want to cut car emissions by 40 percent by 2030

October 03, 2018

PARIS (AP) — The European Parliament wants to cut CO2 emissions from new cars and vans by 40 percent by 2030 and will try to convince the European Union's 28 nations to back the idea despite objections from the powerful car industry.

The proposed cut agreed on by the legislators Wednesday was a compromise between environmentalists who wanted tougher commitments and those who wanted to avoid too much damage to the auto industry. The EU nations will discuss the measures further this month. Car producers in the EU are warning that tough cuts would cost manufacturing jobs.

Car emissions have become a big issue in Europe since Volkswagen's scandal in September 2015 in which it admitted to rigging diesel engines to cheat on U.S. emissions tests. That led to a wide-ranging examination of all diesels — and the discovery that many of them emitted far more pollutants on the road than in testing. There was talk of banning older diesels from some cities, and of ending the subsidies for diesel fuel that helped propel sales.

Originally, the parliament's environment committee had wanted a 45 percent cut but, pressured by the biggest political group, the EPP Christian Democrats, it reduce it to 40 percent. The EU's executive Commission had argued for 30 percent.

EU environment ministers will discuss the issue at their meeting next Tuesday with a final decision not expected before December. The position of Germany will be crucial. So far, the coalition in the EU's biggest economy had backed the more modest target set by the EU Commission.

The Secretary General of the ACEA European car producers group, Erik Jonnaert, said that "40 percent is in our opinion, over the top" adding that the Commission agrees with them that "everything beyond 30 percent is going to create major social implications."

Experts say that to lower emissions substantially, manufacturers will have to sell more hybrid and electric cars. So far, consumers are hesitant to buy electrics due to worries about their battery range and the availability of recharging stations.

The German Association of the Automotive Industry, which represents leading automakers like Volkswagen and BMW, accused the European Parliament of setting "completely unrealistic targets." "It is ignoring the technical and economic feasibility" of the proposal, chairman Bernhard Mattes said in a statement. "It will not be possible to implement the targets in this timeframe," he added, arguing that lawmakers risked endangering jobs in many European countries."

Casert reported from Brussels. Geir Moulson contributed from Berlin.

UK's May tells critics to drop dream of a 'perfect' Brexit

October 03, 2018

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May battled to unite her Conservative Party on Wednesday, telling critics to abandon their dreams of a "perfect" Brexit and "come together" as divorce negotiations with the European Union enter their tough final phase.

May took on her detractors in a punchy address to the party's annual conference, a day after a rival, former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, challenged her authority with a crowd-pleasing speech of his own.

"If we all go off in different directions in pursuit of our own visions of the perfect Brexit, we risk ending up with no Brexit at all," May said in a warning to Johnson and others who aim to oust her or force her to change course.

"A Brexit that might make Britain stronger 50 years from now is no good to you if it makes your life harder today," she noted. Britain's governing party is deeply divided over the country's impending departure from the EU, with pro- and anti-EU camps both criticizing the prime minister's negotiations with the bloc.

With just under six months until Britain leaves the EU on March 29, the speech Wednesday was an attempt by May to solve her Brexit conundrum. The EU has rejected her proposed Brexit deal and demanded new ideas from Britain. But pro-Brexit members of May's Conservative government oppose any softening of the U.K.'s stance.

So the negotiations with the EU have ground to a halt, U.K. businesses are growing jittery and Conservative Brexiteers like Johnson are demanding that the U.K. make a clean break with the bloc — deal or no deal.

Less than three weeks before a make-or-break EU summit in Brussels, May said divorce talks were entering their "toughest phase." But she rejected calls by Euroskeptics to walk away from the talks, saying that "leaving without a deal — introducing tariffs and costly checks at the border — would be a bad outcome for the U.K. and the EU."

May's speech was a direct riposte to Johnson, who told a rapturous audience on Tuesday that May's proposal for close post-Brexit economic ties with the EU was an "outrage" that would leave Britain unable to strike new trade deals around the world.

May defended her Brexit blueprint, which aims to keep Britain aligned with many EU rules in return for remaining in the bloc's single market for goods. She argued that her plan would preserve the frictionless trade that many businesses depend on, while ensuring "no change whatsoever" to Northern Ireland's border with Ireland.

The U.K. and the EU agree there must be no customs checks or other barriers along the currently invisible border between the U.K.'s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland. But they don't agree on how to achieve that, and the issue remains the biggest obstacle to a Brexit deal.

May's speech was a triumph compared to last year's disastrous event, when she was plagued by a cough, interrupted by a prankster and had parts of the stage backdrop fall down as she was speaking. This time, May even poked fun at her robotic public image — cemented when her awkward dance moves on a trip to Africa went viral — by busting a move as she took the stage to ABBA's "Dancing Queen."

She reached out to voters whose living standards have been squeezed by stagnating incomes and public-spending cuts since the 2008 global financial crisis. In a major policy shift, May said the government would abandon its long-held policy of slashing public spending in the name of deficit reduction.

"A decade after the financial crash, people need to know that the austerity it led to is over," she said. She painted an optimistic picture of post-Brexit Britain, saying "our future is full of promise."

It was an upbeat end to an anxious Conservative conference in Birmingham, central England. A week ago, the opposition Labor Party met in Liverpool, at an event brimming with energy and confidence. The Conservatives, in contrast, were full of doubt. Many delegates lamented the fact that Brexit has drowned out the party's message on housing, taxation, health care and other big issues.

While pro-Brexit delegates railed against May's compromises and the iniquities of Brussels, pro-EU Tories claimed Brexit had tainted the party with an inward-looking image that turns off voters, especially the young.

May's speech was welcomed by many in a party worn down by Brexit bickering. "It was not just about Brexit — she gave a vision for the country for the future," said Rishi Fernando from London. "This has definitely increased my respect for her."

But May's future remains uncertain. Many Conservatives expect her to face a leadership challenge soon after Brexit day — or even before. Pro-Brexit legislator James Duddridge on Wednesday called the Brexit negotiations "an absolute disaster" and said he had added his name to a list of Conservative lawmakers demanding a confidence vote in the prime minister.

A vote will be triggered if 48 legislators ask for one. No one knows yet how many have already submitted their requests. "We need a strong leader and we haven't got that at the moment," Duddridge said.

Ethiopia faces reforms' next steps as ruling coalition meets

October 03, 2018

MOMBASA, Kenya (AP) — Declaring "a true measure of leadership is not indispensability," Ethiopia's prime minister on Wednesday urged the next steps in the country's sweeping reforms as the ruling coalition that has led for decades opened its first congress since he took power in April.

A true leader produces qualified successors and makes "herself/himself redundant," Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed told the gathering, according to Twitter posts by his chief of staff, Fitsum Arega. The 42-year-old prime minister has pledged free and fair elections in Africa's second most populous nation in 2020 and dramatically widened the political space by welcoming once-banned opposition groups home from exile. Ethiopia since 1991 has been led by the coalition and allied parties that hold every seat in Parliament.

The political and economic reforms, which have made surprising peace with longtime rival Eritrea and would open state-run enterprises to investment, have been welcomed with enthusiasm by many, but already Abiy has been the target of an assassination attempt. Last week Ethiopia's attorney general filed terrorism charges against five people and accused them of wanting to pave the way for the once-banned Oromo Liberation Front.

Some have expressed concern that enthusiasm over the returning groups has played a role in the resurgence of deadly ethnic tensions that pose a major challenge to reforms. In the latest unrest, the Oromia region reported more than 70,000 people displaced by fresh violence in late September. The number of Ethiopia's internally displaced people has reached 2.8 million, up from 1.6 million at the beginning of the year, the United Nations recently reported.

Ethiopians have long expressed grievances over the country's federal structure that is largely based on ethnic lines and has been held together by the ruling coalition and its security forces. The nation of 100 million people has more than 80 ethnic groups.

On Wednesday, Abiy told the congress that "a federal form of government is a preferred option in Ethiopia as long as we don't confuse regional arrangements with ethnic identity," according to his chief of staff. "Each regional administrative unit should serve all citizens with respect and without discrimination."

The ruling coalition is undergoing a significant transformation, Awol Kassim Allo, a lecturer in law at Keele University in Britain, said in a Facebook post. This week it is expected to change its name and core leadership and elect a leader.

It is inconceivable that the coalition will unseat Abiy, who brought the country back from the brink after months of widespread anti-government protests demanding more freedoms, Awol said. "He is the only figure within and outside the ruling coalition with the political capital and cultural appeal to steer Ethiopia through this difficult and complex period of transition."

Anna reported from Johannesburg.

India deports Rohingya Muslims to Myanmar

October 04, 2018

GAUHATI, India (AP) — India on Thursday deported its first group of Rohingya Muslims since the government last year ordered the expulsion of members of the Myanmar minority group and others who entered the country illegally.

The deportation was carried out after the Supreme Court rejected a last-minute plea by the seven men's lawyer that they be allowed to remain in India because they feared reprisals in Myanmar. They were arrested in 2012 for entering India illegally and have been held in prison since then.

Indian authorities handed the seven over to Myanmar officials at a border crossing in Moreh in Manipur state, a police officer said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters. Each carried a bag of belongings.

The Supreme Court said it would allow their deportation because Myanmar had accepted them as citizens. Government attorney Tushar Mehta told the judges that Myanmar had given the seven certificates of identity and 1-month visas to facilitate their deportation.

Most Rohingya Muslims in Buddhist-majority Myanmar are denied citizenship and face widespread discrimination. Defense attorney Prashant Bhushan said the government should treat them as refugees, not as illegal migrants, and send a representative of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees to talk to them so they would not be deported under duress.

About 700,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since August 2017 to escape a brutal campaign of violence by Myanmar's military. An estimated 40,000 other Rohingya have taken refuge in parts of India. Less than 15,000 are registered with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

Many have settled in areas of India with large Muslim populations, including the southern city of Hyderabad, the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi, and the Himalayan region of Jammu-Kashmir. Some have taken refuge in northeast India bordering Bangladesh and Myanmar.

The Indian government says it has evidence there are extremists who pose a threat to the country's security among the Rohingya. India is fighting insurgencies in northern Kashmir and in its northeastern states.