Wet summer weather in Northern Sweden has affected not only the yield of wild berries growing there, but also the economic well-being of the berry pickers, which, in this case, happen to be temporary workers from Thailand. Journalist Bertil Lintner writes that in 2007, Sweden began to give Thais...
RAGUNDA, NORTHERN SWEDEN: It’s been a bad year for blueberries and lingonberries in Sweden. Normally, these wild berries grow in abundance in the Swedish forests. But a long, wet summer with more rain than anyone can remember destroyed the berries...
Recent scandals over US mistreatment of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan have badly tarnished America’s human rights record. Grave as the abuses are, says globalization scholar Susan Ariel Aaronson, the Bush administration can help restore at least a measure of goodwill by promoting human rights...
Diamonds from Africa and elsewhere must now be certified to ensure that their mining has not promoted conflicts or human rights violations.
WASHINGTON: A common criticism of free trade is that it fattens the...
After the Asian financial crisis, 9/11, and SARS, Singapore's tourism decreased dramatically, with sales touching the bottom in 2003. This year, however, industry players are seeing a significant recovery. Authorities believe that sales could return to pre-SARS levels this year, and pre-9/11...
(SINGAPORE) 2004 is turning out to be a bumper year for some of Singapore's major tour operators, which expect revenue to surge close to pre-Sept 11 levels. And if nothing goes wrong, the industry could see full recovery by next year, players...
Working and living abroad as an au pair should be an exciting and rewarding experience for young men and women. It gives them the opportunity to stay with a family while they experience an unfamiliar culture. But this very unfamiliarity – so exciting when the au pairs are warmly received – can...
Coming as an au pair to Germany is supposed to be a good experience for young foreigners, but it can sometimes turn into a nightmare, as the case of Ramona Radulovici showed.
Radulovici, 21, came to a family...
Governments have long encouraged minimal or no taxation in free trade zones and freeports to encourage commerce and economic activity, and the concept of secure warehouses for luxury goods in transit began with the Geneva Freeport in the late 19th century. Such complexes expand worldwide as...
The art of hiding: An Etruscan sarcophagus stored by a shell company in a Swiss freeport was later returned to Italy; museums can warehouse treasures, too (Source: New York Times, AP)
SAN FRANCISCO: An archipelago of tax-free storage facilities...
A rising China since 1980 has changed the global trade landscape. The world’s leading manufacturer, the largest trading nation and second largest economy has displaced the United States from its traditional dominance. Roland Rajah and Alyssa Leng analyzed bilateral trade data from the International...
Boko Haram, a Salafist extremist group continues to terrorize northern Nigeria in a quest for a strict Islamist state. A bomb killed 75 in Abuja, April 14, followed the next day by the kidnapping of more than 200 girls from a school in Chibok. The group’s Arabic name suggests intention to wage...
Jihad, old and new: Devastated parents want to know the fate of daughters kidnapped by Boko Haram (top); the Site where Muslim Reformers prepared their horses for the first battle of the jihad in 1804 (Photo frm H. A. S. Johnston, The Fulani Empire...
In its desire to reduce carbon emissions, the European Union has come up with a plan that has run into strong headwind. An EU regulation, in effect as of January 2012, requires carbon-trade certificates from airlines taking off or landing at EU airports. Europe’s airline industry has operated under...
Click here to read the article on Spiegel Online.
