Turkey: The Coronavirus Meets Authoritarianism in Turkey - by Isaac Chotiner

 In a public address on Monday night, the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, stated, “Turkey is a country where production must continue and the cogs must keep turning under every circumstance and every condition.” Turkey, where more than two hundred people have died from the new coronavirus, has one of the world’s fastest-growing outbreaks, but Erdoğan has resisted urgent action, calling only for a “voluntary quarantine” for most of the country. Opposition politicians have called for harsher measures against the coronavirus, including the types of lockdowns that have gone into effect around the world, but they have been increasingly besieged and marginalized in recent years, as Erdoğan has extended his power and thrown his rivals in prison. Last week, Turkey arrested hundreds of people for “provocative” posts about the outbreak on social media. Medical professionals who have urged harsher measures have issued apologies after being arrested.

I recently spoke by phone with Emrah Altindis, a professor of biology at Boston College who has been studying the epidemic in Turkey, where he is from. He is also one of the editors of the book “Authoritarianism and Resistance in Turkey: Conversations on Democratic and Social Challenges.” During our conversation, which has been edited for length and clarity, we discussed how Erdoğan’s privatization of the medical system affected coronavirus preparation, how the Syrian refugee crisis has changed Turkish society, and the dangers of an outbreak in Turkey’s prisons.

Let’s start with the numbers. The first case in Turkey was detected on March 11th. This was later than in most countries. And the first death happened on March 17th. And as of today, March 31st, we have lost two hundred and fourteen people. And the number of cases that are confirmed is 13,531. If you compare these numbers to other countries’ after they had a hundred cases detected, Turkey has the biggest rate of increase in the number of cases in the world right now. So it means that it is really very serious.

We have some hope with the mortality rate. As you know, it is very high in Spain and in Italy. But in Turkey, if these official numbers are true—and they are extremely questionable, because there is no transparency in Turkey—but, if these numbers are true, then the rate is less than in Italy or Spain.

Read more: The Coronavirus Meets Authoritarianism in Turkey | The New Yorker

The Czech Republic’s pro-Russian president is in trouble - Taking back the castle

As Democratic checks and balances buckle in Poland and Hungary, the Czech Republic has seemed to many like the next central European country in line to succumb. Andrej Babis, a billionaire businessman, became prime minister after winning October’s general election despite facing fraud charges. He now collaborates closely with his country’s pro-Russian though largely ceremonial president, Milos Zeman. Liberals fret that the pair pose a growing challenge to the rule of law and to the Czech Republic’s pro-Western orientation. But Czech voters and institutions appear to be pushing back
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Although Mr Zeman came top in the first round of the country’s presidential election, scoring 38.6% of the vote on January 12th-13th, he fell well short of a majority. The runner-up, Professor Jiri Drahos, a soft-spoken political novice who previously led the Czech Academy of Sciences, won a larger-than-expected 26.6%, which puts him in a good position to displace the incumbent in the run-off at the end of the month. Three days later, on January 16th, parliament rejected Mr Babis’s attempt to form a minority government.

As the leader of the largest party, he was invited to try to do so by the president, though he controls just 78 of the 200 parliamentary seats, lacks a coalition partner and is accused of fraud in connection with EU subsidies for a development project. All told, the presidential second round, on January 26th-27th, is shaping up as a referendum on the direction of the country, if not the entire region.

In September MPs voted by 123 to four to strip Mr Babis of his immunity from prosecution on the fraud charges, but because parliament was then dissolved for the October election, they must now do so again. In noticeable contrast to Mr Zeman, Mr Drahos has called on Mr Babis to give up his immunity voluntarily, and prove his innocence. On January 16th Mr Babis obliged. With police and prosecutors pressing the case, the Hospodarske Noviny newspaper recently leaked a report from EU investigators accusing Mr Babis of “numerous breaches of national and EU legislation”.

Read more: The Czech Republic’s pro-Russian president is in trouble - Taking back the castle

Caribbean - Cuba: EU to start talks with Cuba on a co-operation accord

Havana, Cuba

The European Union (EU) will agree next month to deepen relations with Cuba in its most significant overture to the communist island since the bloc lifted diplomatic sanctions in 2008, people close to the matter have told Reuters.

Foreign ministers from the EU’s 28 countries will give the go-ahead on February 10 to launch talks with Havana on a special co-operation accord to increase trade, investment and dialogue on human rights. The pact could be agreed by the end of 2015.

"Cuba wants capital and the EU wants influence," said one person involved in the talks who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. "This co-operation could serve as a prelude to much more."

Two other people with knowledge of the negotiations told Reuters that a consensus had been reached in Brussels to give momentum to Cuba’s market-oriented reforms under President Raul Castro and to position European companies for any transition to a more capitalist economy there in the longer term.

While the initial effect of a co-operation agreement will be limited, the symbolism is huge for the EU, whose ties with Cuba had been strained since it imposed sanctions in 2003 in response to Havana’s arrest of 75 dissidents.

he EU is Cuba’s biggest foreign investor and Cuba’s second biggest trading partner after Venezuela, and a third of the tourists to the island every year come from the EU.

Cuba recently opened a Chinese-style special economic zone and is preparing a new foreign investment law.

The country is seeking foreign investment at its port facilities in Mariel Bay to take advantage of the expansion of the Panama Canal.

Read more: EU to start talks with Cuba on a co-operation accord | Americas | BDlive