Alcohol, 200,000 deaths in 2006

The Charter establishing the Forum on Alcohol and Health was signed by over 40 representatives of European NGOs and agencies in Brussels last week. The Forum is the brainchild of European Commissioner for Public Health Markos Kyprianou “to protect European citizens from the harmful use of alcohol”. The Forum – in which member states, EU […]

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Humanitarian aid for Africa

Somalia and the region of the Sahel (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Nigeria) are the beneficiaries of the recent allocation of humanitarian aid decided by Brussels on 8 June. The funds are of two kinds: the first to finance the new global Plan of aid for the Sahel in support of vulnerable populations such […]

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Demographic ageing

The group of high-level government experts established by the European Commission to advise on demographic ageing met for the first time in Brussels on 11 June. In conformity with the recommendations of the 2005 Green Paper on demography, the purpose of the group is to guide and advise the Executive on “the formulation of the […]

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Partnership for public health

Margaret Chan, new General Director of the World Health Organization (WHO), and the regional WHO Director for Europe Marc Danzon had a meeting with the President of the Commission José Manuel Barroso and EU Commissioners Markos Kyprianou (Health) and Janez Potocnik (Research) in Brussels on Tuesday 12 June to discuss the reinforcement of EU-WHO cooperation […]

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European dailies and weeklies

The events in Gaza are also giving food for thought and concern to German commentators. Inge Günther writing in the FRANKFURTER RUNDSCHAU (13/6) comments as follows: “A ceasefire is no longer enough to solve the problem. The causes are many. They have to do with the fact that 1.5 million people cannot be cooped up […]

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FRONT PAGE

Setting a good example

Five months after Bulgaria’s accession to the EU, the country is reviewing its progress in this first European period in its history. After the long process of reforms, Bulgarians felt their membership of the big European family as recognition of the efforts they have made to achieve a goal so ardently desired. The chance of […]

di Iva Mihailova Bulgaria

Portugal: European colloquium of parishes

“Living as Christians in our time” is the theme of the 24th European Colloquium of Parishes (CEP) due to be held in Porto (Portugal) from 8 to 12 July. The meeting will reflect on the relation between Christian faith and daily life, also in the light of the Bible and a re-reading of Vatican Council […]

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Italy: week on people’s mission

“Fifty years later: where is the mission? From the people’s mission in Milan to the forms of daily mission in the new forums of our time”: that’s the theme of the 57th week of pastoral aggiornamento promoted by the COP (Pastoral Guidance Centre), due to be held at Triuggio (Milan) from 18 to 21 June. […]

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Luxembourg: meeting on migrations

A joint Franco-Luxembourg meeting on “migrations” will be held in the parish centre of Oberkorn, in Luxembourg, on 15 June. Promoted by the CPMT (Centre of Pastoral Care in the World of Work) and ACI (Catholic Action), the meeting will include an address by the director of CPMT, Jos Freylinger, on the cultural and social […]

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Hungary: overcoming conflicts with understanding

“For some great personalities of Eastern Europe it is impossible to establish with certainty to what nation they belong. The debate has been extended also to the best known exponents of the Church; nonetheless our task is to recall and propagate the idea of the universal, i.e. supranational, Church”, said Kafer Istva¡n, director of the […]

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