TEXT

Until a few weeks ago, the immigrant transfer center on the tiny Mediterranean island of Lampedusa/Italy was empty. An extensive European campaign against migration from Africa was considered so effective that the authorities basically shut it down.

But since the Tunisian government collapsed in January, spurring unrest across North Africa, Lampedusa has been bustling. The Italian police tow in boats full of desperate immigrants — about 6,000 refugees in the past two months. Young men in hooded jackets smoke cigarettes and await transfer to the mainland — a prospect that is striking fear in many European hearts.

The turmoil in Libya and elsewhere in the region has toppled or undermined North African dictators who negotiated a web of benefits from Europe, including aid and diplomatic standing, in return for stopping immigrants seeking to cross the Mediterranean.

Without the assistance of those leaders, many in Europe worry that they will face new waves of illegal immigration not only from the liberated areas in the north, but from much of sub-Saharan Africa as well.

The immigrants would arrive at a time when much of Europe — struggling with high unemployment and lethargic economies — is already awash with anti-immigrant sentiment, and many countries say they are simply incapable of absorbing poor migrants.

Unable to build the kind of border fence that the United States has erected to keep Mexicans at home, countries like Spain and Italy have spent years forging close relationships with North African leaders, persuading them to prevent migrants from trying to sail the rough seas of the Mediterranean. In return, Morocco, Tunisia and particularly Libya sometimes used brutal tactics to keep immigrants from ever getting near European shores, human rights activists say.

Italy‘s agreement with Libya, signed in 2008, was considered especially effective. Italy pledged $5 billion over 20 years in exchange for Libya blocking would-be immigrants from leaving. Almost overnight immigrants stopped arriving in Lampedusa.

According to the Italian Interior Ministry, in 2008, more than 36,000 immigrants came ashore in Italy — not only from North Africa, but from the Horn of Africa, Niger and Nigeria. After the treaty, that number dropped to 9,500 in 2009 and slowed to a relative trickle in Lampedusa.

Italy‘s arrangement with Libya was hardly the only one. Spain, too, has over the years enlisted the help of Morocco and other African countries in dealing with immigrants. Experts say it has offered countries equipment for patrolling shorelines and economic aid of all sorts — so that immigrants have fewer reasons to leave and African governments have more reason to help.

Spain offered Senegal money to help repatriate immigrants who were often returned to the Dakar airport but did not have the money or the incentive to return to their villages. At times, the European Union pays for such projects, too.

The agreements have been effective. In the past year, control of the African coastline was so tight that immigrants were turning to a wholly different route, showing up on the land border between Greece and Turkey. In recent weeks, Italian officials have warned of a ―biblical exodus" in which as many as 300,000 could arrive, though many experts say that number is intended more as a way to stir up passions domestically than as a reflection of any clear reality.

Now, the island‘s local population of 6,000 is once again outnumbered by detained migrants, according to the ministry. At one point, there were so many immigrants here that the authorities allowed them to wander the island freely rather than keep them locked up. Inside the center on Wednesday, hundreds of young men, almost all from Tunisia, were eager to tell visitors their message: ―We want work."

Adapted from: www.nytimes.com march 09,2011

TEXT

Until a few weeks ago, the immigrant transfer center on the tiny Mediterranean island of Lampedusa/Italy was empty. An extensive European campaign against migration from Africa was considered so effective that the authorities basically shut it down.

But since the Tunisian government collapsed in January, spurring unrest across North Africa, Lampedusa has been bustling. The Italian police tow in boats full of desperate immigrants — about 6,000 refugees in the past two months. Young men in hooded jackets smoke cigarettes and await transfer to the mainland — a prospect that is striking fear in many European hearts.

The turmoil in Libya and elsewhere in the region has toppled or undermined North African dictators who negotiated a web of benefits from Europe, including aid and diplomatic standing, in return for stopping immigrants seeking to cross the Mediterranean.

Without the assistance of those leaders, many in Europe worry that they will face new waves of illegal immigration not only from the liberated areas in the north, but from much of sub-Saharan Africa as well.

The immigrants would arrive at a time when much of Europe — struggling with high unemployment and lethargic economies — is already awash with anti-immigrant sentiment, and many countries say they are simply incapable of absorbing poor migrants.

Unable to build the kind of border fence that the United States has erected to keep Mexicans at home, countries like Spain and Italy have spent years forging close relationships with North African leaders, persuading them to prevent migrants from trying to sail the rough seas of the Mediterranean. In return, Morocco, Tunisia and particularly Libya sometimes used brutal tactics to keep immigrants from ever getting near European shores, human rights activists say.

Italy‘s agreement with Libya, signed in 2008, was considered especially effective. Italy pledged $5 billion over 20 years in exchange for Libya blocking would-be immigrants from leaving. Almost overnight immigrants stopped arriving in Lampedusa.

According to the Italian Interior Ministry, in 2008, more than 36,000 immigrants came ashore in Italy — not only from North Africa, but from the Horn of Africa, Niger and Nigeria. After the treaty, that number dropped to 9,500 in 2009 and slowed to a relative trickle in Lampedusa.

Italy‘s arrangement with Libya was hardly the only one. Spain, too, has over the years enlisted the help of Morocco and other African countries in dealing with immigrants. Experts say it has offered countries equipment for patrolling shorelines and economic aid of all sorts — so that immigrants have fewer reasons to leave and African governments have more reason to help.

Spain offered Senegal money to help repatriate immigrants who were often returned to the Dakar airport but did not have the money or the incentive to return to their villages. At times, the European Union pays for such projects, too.

The agreements have been effective. In the past year, control of the African coastline was so tight that immigrants were turning to a wholly different route, showing up on the land border between Greece and Turkey. In recent weeks, Italian officials have warned of a ―biblical exodus" in which as many as 300,000 could arrive, though many experts say that number is intended more as a way to stir up passions domestically than as a reflection of any clear reality.

Now, the island‘s local population of 6,000 is once again outnumbered by detained migrants, according to the ministry. At one point, there were so many immigrants here that the authorities allowed them to wander the island freely rather than keep them locked up. Inside the center on Wednesday, hundreds of young men, almost all from Tunisia, were eager to tell visitors their message: ―We want work."

Adapted from: www.nytimes.com march 09,2011

Ceará – La mer, le soleil et la multitude

La Capitale du Soleil. C‘est le nom que donnent à Fortaleza les habitants du Ceará. Cette destination, dont le principal atout se résume à ses magnifiques plages, ne souffre jamais d‘une baisse de fréquentation due à l‘alternance des saisons. Elle jouit, en effet, d‘une situation privilégiée, caressée par le soleil et la chaleur toute l‘année, ce qui lui vaut d‘être l‘une des capitales les plus visitées du Brésil.

Fortaleza est la porte d‘entrée qui nous fait découvrir ce paradis. Les infrastructures de la ville permettent au visiteur de profiter pleinement des plages ensoleillées et des eaux limpides. La plus connue d‘entre elles, aussi bien fréquentée par les autochtones que par les touristes, est la Praia do Futuro. Les petits stands disséminés le long de la mer offrent parasols, tables, chaises et se tiennent à l‘entière disposition pour que tous profitent de ce moment de farniente.

C‘est également l‘occasion d‘apprécier la cuisine locale avec ses poissons et ses fruits de mer fraîchement préparés. Les plages de Mucuripe et Meireles disposent d‘une infrastructure similaire et leurs eaux calmes sont propices à un bain de mer serein. Le charme de la plage d‘Iracema réside plutôt dans l‘ambiance qui règne à la tombée du jour. Ce sont alors les nombreux petits bars qui créent l‘ambiance, rivalisant la bonne musique et les surprenants cocktails. Les touristes peuvent également y apprécier l‘inoubliable vue sur le pont métallique le soir. Pour ceux qui aiment une soirée plus agitée la plage d‘Iracema certainement ne pourra que les combler.

Adapté de Brasil Culture, Nature et Négoces, p.10, septembre 2010

TEXTO

EL CÓDIGO MAYA DE DRESDE

Un científico alemán asegura haber descifrado el llamado Código Maya de Dresde y descubierto en uno de sus capítulos indicaciones precisas que conducirían a un gran tesoro de oro de una cultura desaparecida en las aguas del lago de Izabal de Guatemala. "El Código Maya de Dresde conduce a un gigantesco tesoro en Guatemala de ocho toneladas de oro puro", afirma el matemático Joachim Rittsteig, desde hace 40 años, estudioso del documento, en declaraciones que publica hoy el rotativo alemán Bild. Añade que "en la página 52 se habla de la capital maya de Atlan, que resultó destruida por un terremoto el 30 de octubre del año 666 antes de nuestra era. En la ciudad se guardaban 2.156 tablas de oro en las que los mayas grabaron sus leyes". El tesoro se hundió junto a la ciudad en las aguas del lago de Izabal, situado al este de Guatemala, cuyos restos han sido localizados por el científico alemán gracias a imágenes de radar tomadas en la zona. "En ellas pueden verse claramente los restos de la ciudad. En las ruinas de una fortaleza se aprecia el sarcófago de piedra en el que podrían encontrarse las 2.156 tablas de oro. Los datos de que dispongo muestran el lugar con un margen de error de 10 centímetros", asegura Rittsteig. El experto, que busca actualmente patrocinadores para una expedición a Guatemala, calcula que "sólo el valor del oro de las tablas asciende actualmente a 211 millones de euros" (unos 290 millones de dólares). El Código Maya de Dresde, redactado sobre el año 1250 de nuestra era por sacerdotes mayas, es uno de los cuatro grandes documentos que se conservan de esa cultura y se encuentra en poder de la Biblioteca Estatal de Sajonia, al este de Alemania, desde hace 272 años. El código fue descubierto en 1739 en poder de un hombre acaudalado de Viena -sin que se sepa cómo llegó a sus manos-, quien lo regaló a la biblioteca de Dresde, que lo conserva bajo un cristal blindado en su sala de tesoros documentales. Joachim Rittsteig ha dedicado prácticamente toda su vida a descifrar el valioso documento, compuesto por 74 páginas con 3,56 metros de largo y un total de 74 jeroglifos distintos. El Código Maya de Dresde contiene la práctica totalidad de los conocimientos de la cultura maya, entre ellos los astronómicos o médicos, y en su última hoja describe el apocalipsis o fin del mundo, que debería tener lugar el 21 de diciembre de 2012.

Periódico ABC - Madrid, 28/02/2011