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Full episode 01.09.10 | 22:30 - 23:00 UTC

European Journal - The Magazine from Brussels

Full episode

European Journal - The Magazine from Brussels

Topic

France: Opposition to Halal burgers

Topic

Series: Village Scenes - Tales of Rural Life in Europe

Halal burgers instead of ham and bacon. More and more of the French fast-food company Quick's snack bars are shifting to food permitted under Islam. Some local politicians object to the change.

Topics

Poland: Conflict over a cross

A wooden cross in front of Warsaw's Presidential Palace has led to heated disputes in a political struggle over the Catholic Church's influence on politics. Polish boy scouts erected the cross in memory of President Lech Kaczynski, who died in an airplane crash in April. The newly elected President Bronislaw Komorowski wanted to have the cross removed and cited the separation of Church and State.

But militant Catholics set up a watch to prevent that. Now the deceased president's twin brother Jaroslaw Kaczynski, who had run for the office himself, is pouring oil on the fire.

France: Opposition to Halal burgers

Some branches of the French fast-food chain Quick no longer sell anything that's not halal, or allowed under Islam. And not everyone is pleased with this. The mayors of several town have protested what they call discrimination against non-Muslims. Quick, the French answer to McDonalds, has been experimenting since last fall with a menu altered to suit Muslim customers.

Halal products may not contain pork or animals that were not ritually slaughtered. The demand is so strong that Quick wants to convert more branches to halal food.

Series: Village Scenes - Tales of Rural Life in Europe

Part 6: Romania: Szekelydobo - the village where shepherds battle hunters

Shepherds in the eastern Carpathian Mountains have many enemies: bears, lynxes, and wolves -- and now the hunters who kill their sheep dogs. Shepherd Lajos Vitez has a herd of 600 sheep. The law says he is entitled to keep two sheepdogs. But Vitez has twelve dogs and doesn't want to do without any of them, because they protect the sheep from wolves and other predators on high-altitude pastures. But hunters shoot at his dogs. They have leased an area from the Romanian state and organize hunts for Western tourists. One requirement for keeping their lease is that they must shoot sheepdogs that overrun the quota. And so now there is no peace in this Carpathian village.

Austria: Haider's Banana Republic

Slush funds and dubious contacts with dictators. Almost every day shocking reports emerge about Jörg Haider, the deceased governor of the province of Carinthia. It is said 45 million euros are in an account in Liechtenstein. Jörg Haider is said to have accepted money even from Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. More and more evidence is appearing, but it's not clear how accurate it is.

But it is clear that Austria is rife with a mixture of nepotism, graft, and a self-service mentality. The vastly understaffed public prosecutor's office seems almost powerless.

Britain: A life for lobster and crabs

What Sion Williams likes about his job is that he is his own boss. He sets out his lobster traps off the coast of the Welsh island of Pen Llyn. Already as a small boy, Sion Williams went every weekend out to sea with his father to catch fish. At 14, he owned his first 25 lobster pots. Today, 22 years later, he has 600 of them and lives solely from what he catches.

His lobsters, crabs, and shrimp are prepared in a small family business. And if not enough seafood turns up in his traps, Sion Williams works in his other profession: leasing his catamaran to tourists and teaching them to fish.