Approved at the on-going Council of the Eurpean Union, by the heads of State and government:
"The Member States whose currency is the euro may establish a
stability mechanism to be activated if indispensable to safeguard
the stability of the euro area as a whole. The granting of any
required financial assistance under the mechanism will be made
subject to strict conditionality".
It is full of conditionalities, obviously, but it is an important step ahead in terms of calming the euro markets.
It also shows, it is clear, that the future of the euro was under serious threat. The collapsing might have been closer than what we had thought.
Thursday, 16 December 2010
The Brussels big and expensive underground parking
The European institutions have become a parking lot for second hand national politicians. All of them have lost speed in the home country. But some are vintage items that are hard to dispose of. It is good, from time to time, to see their pictures and let them run for a few miles. Others, are just waiting to be sent to the trash machine.
Tuesday, 16 December 2008
Sunday, 7 December 2008
Fashion, peace and love
Copyright V.Ângelo
Peace and love are back in Sierra Leone, West Africa. And the fashion houses, like this one in Makeni, the headquarters town of the Northern Province, are pretty busy. Creativity is part of building a more democratic and stable society and country.
Sierra Leone and the international community have a major challenge: the fashion of peace needs deeper roots. The dividends of peace are yet to fully marry the democratic dispensation.
Monday, 1 December 2008
The ancient roots
Copyright V. Angelo
One has to respect one´s roots.
The village has been revamped and is now a main tourist attraction. The roots and tradition can also become part of the economy of today.
Sunday, 30 November 2008
Sunny winter
Copyright V.Angelo
There is a bit of light during winter as well.
No justification for dark thoughts.
Friday, 21 November 2008
Sunday, 9 November 2008
Going East
Copyright V.Angelo
My day in Sahel started very early. Trekking East, making sure that our presence brings stability and security to the area. It's a job for early birds, and a tough one, for that matter.
Protecting refugee children
Copyright V.Angelo
Darfuri children in Eastern Chad need protection against violence, forced recruitments into armed groups and very harsh living conditions. They also need the Sudanese education ministry to accept and recognise the academic degrees obtained by the school children in the refugee camps. As such, once they are back in Sudan, after a peace process, their qualifications for a better life are fully accepted.
Sunday, 2 November 2008
Breakfast, the young lady cat
Today I got Kate's new pictures. She is so beautiful, green eyes, big and very round, a very smart look, extremely focused, and so playful. I have always loved her and the pictures today brought her back to me. Feline love, indeed.
Her first name was not Kate. Kate was the name given to her by her new masters when I left Freetown. When I got her, brought to me by one of my local close protection boys, who cared a lot about me, and my being so much alone in my house, she was just a baby cat, full of fear, nothing else. But she looked since the very beginning very intelligent and also full of energy, not withstanding her very small size. A tiny thing, very fragile, but also very alert.
I called her Breakfast. It is not a strange name for a little cat, if you take into account the circumstances surrounding her life. I knew that the day I would leave the country and leave her behind, she would end up in the pot of one my house staff.
You know , life is pretty tough out there and meat is expensive. But being so small, she could only be served as the morning meal, just to keep the staff going until the main meal would have been earned.
Before leaving the country, I ended up by finding a very good family for her.
I still remember when we had to chase her all over the compound to catch her and place her in the carrying box that would take her to the new home. She couldn't understand why we wanted to get hold of her, she had been a free girl up to then.
But she found a nice family, children and love. The pictures show very clearly she is now a good-looking lady cat. I am sure she has forgotten me, as beautiful ladies do.
Her first name was not Kate. Kate was the name given to her by her new masters when I left Freetown. When I got her, brought to me by one of my local close protection boys, who cared a lot about me, and my being so much alone in my house, she was just a baby cat, full of fear, nothing else. But she looked since the very beginning very intelligent and also full of energy, not withstanding her very small size. A tiny thing, very fragile, but also very alert.
I called her Breakfast. It is not a strange name for a little cat, if you take into account the circumstances surrounding her life. I knew that the day I would leave the country and leave her behind, she would end up in the pot of one my house staff.
You know , life is pretty tough out there and meat is expensive. But being so small, she could only be served as the morning meal, just to keep the staff going until the main meal would have been earned.
Before leaving the country, I ended up by finding a very good family for her.
I still remember when we had to chase her all over the compound to catch her and place her in the carrying box that would take her to the new home. She couldn't understand why we wanted to get hold of her, she had been a free girl up to then.
But she found a nice family, children and love. The pictures show very clearly she is now a good-looking lady cat. I am sure she has forgotten me, as beautiful ladies do.
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