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Ullrich verdict set for January
Germany’s Jan Ullrich will find out in January whether he’ll get a lifetime ban from cycling following his involvement in the Operation Puerto anti-doping probe in Spain five years ago. The scandal broke in May 2006 when Spanish police uncovered more than 200 code-named blood bags, some of which were linked to cyclists. Ullrich retired following the incident and a German criminal probe ended when he agreed to pay a large sum to charity. Both the International cycling union and Swiss Anti-Doping appealed, disputing the Swiss Olympic Committee??�s decision to discontinue legal action against the former T-Mobile rider. Ullrich, who has denied any wrongdoing, became the first German to win the Tour de France in 1997.

Egyptians vote in historic election
Egyptians have started voting in complex elections that will take several months to complete. The first poll beginning on Monday and Tuesday is to choose 498 members of the lower house, the People’s Assembly, who will in turn elect a 100-member committee that will write a new constitution. At the end of January 180 members will then be elected to the upper house, the Shura Council. 40 parties are fielding 10,000 candidates between them, so electoral pacts will become crucial for any bloc to secure a majority. Overseeing all this will be the ruling military council. The process has divided opinion in Egypt. “Everybody must participate in these elections, whether you are for or against, I think the elections are the final solution to this crisis,” said one voter. “We are against all decisions taken by the military council,” said another. “They must first leave the power to civilians. And after we could take the necessary political decisions.” It will not be until at least June before the presidential election. Two probable candidates, Mohamed ElBaradei and Amr Moussa, have been holding talks with the chief of the military council, Field Marshall Mohamed Hussein Tantawi. But hopes of political progress are still being overshadowed by the continuing protest in Cairo’s Tahrir Square. There are fears of a low turn out, but the military council is determined to press ahead with the elections and is urging people to take part.

European Parliament backs Croatia membership
The European Parliament has approved Croatia’s entry to the EU, ahead of the formal signing of an accession treaty next week. Representatives of the Croation parliament took the plaudits on behalf of their country for the reforms it implemented to join the bloc. “Austrian MEP Hannes Swoboda said: “First of all, they (Croatians) contribute with a strong a full cooperation with the international criminal tribunal in the Hague, concerning war crimes. Secondly they did a lot war crimes trials also inside the country, not yet finished but they did it.” Dealing with its wartime past has been a difficult issue for the Balkan nation. While it cooperated with the International Criminal Court there was anger among many Croats when former military leaders were sentenced by the Hague. Tackling corruption remains an issue and the trial of former prime minister Ivo Sanader and other political figures are being closely watched in Brussels. But analysts say Croatia has come a long way. Corina Stratulat, an analyst with the European Policy Centre said: “He (Sanader) is said to have taken vast amounts money from two different companies, the Adria bank and an Hungarian Oil Company. There are those who argue that in fact these series of charges being exposed is an evidence the rule of law and justice is functioning in Croatia.” Croatia is scheduled to finally join the Union in July next year. There will a referendem in the coming weeks, and while the population’s enthusiasm for the EU has dipped at times, it is widely expected they will approve their country becoming the EU’s 28th member.

Clinton arrives in Myanmar
She has become the first US Secretary of State to visit in more than 50 years. Hillary Clinton has touched down in Myanmar, also known as Burma, where she is expected to press the reclusive country’s leaders to deliver on reforms. Her arrival came as pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi gave a rare video conference from her home. She is in favour of engaging with America. “I think the government is quite comfortable with the close link that I have with the United States because they understand that I do not wish to use our friendly relation to the United States to in any way hurt the situation in Burma,” Suu Kyi said via the conference link. Suu Kyi, who was held in detention for 15 years, also confirmed she would run in upcoming by-elections for parliament. She said she was ready to gamble that her government’s reforms were real.

‘Climatic justice not apartheid’, cry Durban protesters
Several thousand protesters have marched through the South African city of Durban to voice their concerns on climate change, as UN climate talks enter their second week. There is anger that poorer countries might not get a fair deal as the summit seeks to update the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gas emissions. “Climatic justice… not climatic apartheid”, was one of the slogans shouted by a protester in a reference to South Africa’s past. “It’s all about our future. It’s all about calling for a sustainable future. We have got to act and we have actually got to act urgently so that we put this planet back onto a sustainable path. At the moment we’re destroying our very life-support systems,” said Bishop Geoff Davies of the Southern African Faith Communities’ Environment Institute. There is also concern that countries may use the financial crisis as an excuse to put off action, but the UN’s climate chief is confident a deal can be done. “There is a realisation that the Kyoto Protocol is definitely critical and that the second commitment period is critical to the success of Durban, but that it is not sufficient,” said Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Climate Change Convention. “We expect an agreement around what the contours of a second commitment period can be, together with the initiation of a process towards a broader mitigation framework,” she said. The EU has said it will sign up to renewed targets – if all big emitters agree legally binding cuts. Beijing has hinted it might, but as things stand the world’s big three emitters of China, India and the US are not bound by Kyoto and other prominent countries such as Russia, Japan and Canada have withdrawn from negotiations.

Apathy clouds Russian parliamentary election
Just days away from parliamentary elections, Moscow shows little sign they are coming. Campaign posters do not generally grab attention, but graffiti on one for the ruling United Russia party – at a bus stop – includes the words ‘crooks and thieves’. Russians have not signalled much enthusiasm for the polls. It is hard to find anyone who thinks Putin’s and Medvedev’s party will lose its majority. Apathy is unmissable in these elections, said socio-political analyst Boris Doubine: “We sense a kind of lassitude among Russians toward the two main figures who have filled the public arena. Apart from them there’s no one else. Time seems to have been frozen, for, say, 10 or 12 years. It’s nothing in the scale of history, but in human terms it’s a lot, especially if these are years during which the person could do something, change something.” Two thirds of Russians today say they are indifferent about political life. Less than half of them felt that way at the last legislative elections in 2007, and before that one third of the electorate said they were apathetic. Student Sacha said: “I think nothing will change if I cast a ballot for one party or another. Everyone knows who’s going to win.” Her friend Macha added: “It’s practically official.” More than half of Russians surveyed echo this. They refuse to play the game because they do not think their participating in these elections will have any impact. Whether they are students, pensioners or professionals, they say there is no real competition, and that any expression of protest is impossible. A young oceanographer, ??arina Kravchishina, said: “I’m not going to vote; it’s not because of apathy; it’s because I’m against politics in our country. They have removed the option of voting against all the candidates – which we used to have. And I don’t see anyone on the lists who I would give my vote to.” Politics has a brain drain effect, observers say. Various sources estimate that between 25,000 and 100,000 Russian scientists are working abroad today. This reflects oddly against the ruling party’s main claim to fame, which is ‘stability’, compared with the chaos of the post-Soviet 1990s. Journalist Youri Saprikine takes that with a grain of salt: “The stability we have now is dark stability, without bright spots,” he said. “It’s the kind of stability you get in a coffin. Nothing happens in there either. The party in power promises us it will keep the state institutions and infrastructure the same – no change. My hope lies in all the talented, honest, scrupulous people, who love their work, and there are a lot of them. If we look at Russia’s history in the last 200 years, we see that life beats a path no matter what; flowers push through cracks in the asphalt.”

Human rights groups urge Russia to show restraint
With Russian opposition forces planning a protest on Saturday several human rights groups have urged the Russian government to show restraint over its mass arrests. The Council of Europe’s Human Rights Commissioner, Thomas Hammerberg told euronews that Moscow is breaking the Europe’s Convention “Freedom of assembly is crucial and it’s crucial after the elections as well and protected by the European Convention for Human Rights. What happens when people are arrested and sentenced to detention just because they took part in demonstrations is against the European Convention,” said Hammerberg. According to Amnesty International more than a thousand people were arrested during protests over the election. Around 100 are still in custody. John Dalhuisen from Amnesty International said: “The authorities are caught between needing to give some oxygen to this protest movement and having rights that need to be respected and the desire to show that they are still fundementally the authorities in control and nothing is for changing.”

Muslim Brotherhood claims lead in Egypt poll
Counting is still underway, but Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood party says its alliance is out in front in the country’s first free election since 1952. Results from the first round of the ballot, which is being spread out over six weeks, are expected on Thursday. Muslim Brotherhood is hoping for a strong parliamentary presence to take on the authority of ruling army generals. Violence broke out in Cairo’s Tahrir Square when polls closed on Tuesday, with protesters calling on the military to step aside immediately. At least 80 people were hurt. Despite pressure to allow total civilian rule, the military council is insisting it will retain overall powers to choose or dismiss a cabinet. Clashes between protesters and police last week left 42 people dead and more than 100 hurt. Some demonstrators are vowing to stay in Tahrir Square until the army gives up power.

Techno-zombies
Smartphones rule. People walk and connect,?�eat and?�phone,?�and often even update their Facebook pages while?�talking with their friends.?�They are never disconnected. ?�Smartphones are pushing the limits?�of what is currently possible?�to the point where some people are worrying for the health of our brains.?�We are overloaded with information, connected 24/24 via new technologies, meaning that our brains are?�permanently multi-tasking.?�?�Jean?�Philippe?�Lachaux, a neuroscience specialist, explains:?�“Our brains are presented with?�an enormous amount of information which all seems important.?�This poses problems of choice.?�The part of?�our?�brain?�which selects the most pertinent information?�is connected to our attention, so our attention is always a bit overloaded.”?�And?�Smartphones are only the beginning. For example, a?�prototype?�mirror can act as a touch-sensitive?�tablet?�in the bathroom.?�Scientists say it is?�important to remain in control of technology rather than being its slave because the impact of too much technology can result in loss of concentration.?�Permanent zapping?�can even lead to information addiction?�in all its forms: computers,?�television, mobile phones,?�all kinds of media. ?�This accelerated?�lifestyle has to be switched off sometimes, so that we learn to appreciate peace and quiet. Our brains?�need it.?�To avoid becoming?�techno-zombies we all need to reach for the off-switch from time to?�time.