Hard reverse for mandatory vaccination plans in Austria

Brussels (EA.com)/Madrid (EUROEFE) - The main European news from the capitals of the partners that make up the Euraactiv Network, including EUROEFE.

In today's news:

Vienna

Due to several technical problems, the Registry of Mandatory Vaccines will not be operational in Austria until next April, two months later than expected by the Government in Vienna.On the other hand, experts question the effectiveness of mandatory vaccination.

The application will not be ready until spring, according to the company Elga GmbH, responsible for the technical part, which is a setback for the government, which planned to introduce mandatory vaccination in February.

Although the Government said that it wants to maintain the initially planned date, it will "take into account" the possible technical difficulties and could expand the period after which it can fine the unvaccinated citizens.

At the same time, critical voices against mandatory vaccination grow.According to the epidemiologist Gerald Gartlehner, the last wave of the omicron variant, very infectious, will boost immunization at a "never seen" speed.

"Therefore, it is likely that mandatory vaccination must.

Due to the application delay, mandatory vaccinations could be "too late to (contain) the omicron variant," said Peter Bußjäger, expertoconstitutionalist at the University of Innsbruck, to Wiener Zeitung.

The COVID-19 Crisis Coordination Unit (GECKO), the main advisory body of the Government for Pandemia, requested that the situation be analyzed again.Karl Stöger, a member of the GECKO, commented that the law that introduces mandatory vaccination should include options to delay that measure.However, he also said that mandatory vaccination is not yet "discarded", since possible new variants after the omicron could force similar measures.

Before the omicron variant appeared, some officials of the European Commission, including the president of the Community Executive, Ursula von der Leyen, assured that mandatory vaccination should appear as an option to convince the population of the need to vaccinate.

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EU presidency

The EU Foreign Ministers will discuss this week possible measures to respond to the repression of anti -government protests in Kazakhstan.

"(They will discuss) the measures that Europe could take to send a message: that you cannot suppress a town, some protesters, who rebel against the cost of life," said European Affairs Minister Clément Beaune, toCNEWS.

The Kazakh authorities affirmed on Sunday that the situation is already stabilizing, after the worst political disturbances in 30 years of independence of the country, and that the troops of the military alliance directed by Russia are controlling several key facilities.

France exercises the Rotary Presidency of the EU Council and hosts an informal ministerial meeting of the Foreign Ministers and EU Defense in Brest on January 13 and 14.

Political leaders in Nursultán and the EU differ in the analysis of the Kazakhstan crisis.

Until date 7.939 people have been arrested and several public buildings were burned during mass protests against the government last week.President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev gave orders to shoot to kill to end the riots.Violence has made speculation about a crisis in the ruling elite, in which Tokayev struggles to consolidate his authority after ceasing several key officials and dismiss the head of the Security Council.The president's website announced the layoffs of several high -level officials.

The Kazakstan Foreign Ministry blamed "certain foreign media" of presenting police violence as acts of repression against peaceful protesters, which protested against the rise in fuel price.

«Pacific concentrations were carried out in the Mangystau region and in the main cities of the country.The requests of the protesters were fulfilled.However, peaceful protests were used by terrorist, extremist and criminal groups to increase tension and violence.Therefore, the state of emergency was declared in the country, ”said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement released on Sunday.

The Kazakh authorities blame the riots to terrorists trained abroad, although they do not say who they are, where they have come from and who finances them.

«Kazakhstan has been the subject of armed aggression by well coordinated and trained terrorist groups abroad.According to preliminary data, among the aggressors there are individuals with experience in military combat areas in the ranks of radical Islamist groups.Currently, the forces of the order and the armed forces of Kazakhstan face terrorists, not "peaceful protesters" as some foreign media, "says the ministry.

According to the source, Kazakh police agencies have received instructions to carry out a large -scale investigation of the causes of the protests.The results will be presented to the international community, they add.

Kazakstan also emphasizes that he has control of the situation and that the troops of the Organization of the Collective Security Treaty (OTSC), led by Russia, are in their territory only temporarily.

“It is important to note that the main combat operations against terrorist groups are carried out by the forces of the order and the armed forces of Kazakhstan.The Paz maintenance of the OTSC will be deployed in Kazakhstan strictly temporarily and will abandon the country as soon as the situation stabilizes (...) ", the Kazakh authorities underline.

Russian and state media reported that 164 people died during clashes, and cite a government publication on social networks.On January 10, 2022, he is declared a national mourning day in the country.

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PARIS

Guillaume Peltier, former vice president of the Les Republicins right -wing party, announced an alliance with the extreme right -wing candidate Éric Zemmour.According to Sunday, Zemmour is the only candidate "capable of winning Emmanuel Macron".

Peltier, who was expelled from Les Républicins by President Christian Jacob, now supports the candidate of the extreme right, which is a clear impulse for the Zemmour campaign, which has been stagnant for several weeks.

Peltier is the first relevant figure that adds to the ranks of the controversial politician of the extreme right, who can already caress his dream of a great union of the right gala.

Last December, the former number two of the party questioned the ideological unit of the formation, when asked: "How to remain insensitive to the (political program for France) of Eric Zemmour?".

Peltier also said that he is "the first and not the last right" right -wing that changes his side for Zemmour.For Pecresse, it will be vital to avoid new exits that can undermine their authority and re -mobilize their supporters.

A large part of Les Répudicains is glad to have fought from the "ballast" of Peltier, who was a member of the ultra -rightist Front National and Mouvement Pour La France in 2001, the Philippe de Villiers party that also supports Zemmour.

(Davide Basso | Euraactiv.FR)

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Berlin

The two largest parties of the German government coalition - the Social Democrats (SPD) of Olaf Scholz and the Greens - are not in a hurry to call a parliamentary vote on compulsory vaccination despite the fact that both support it.

The new Germany government has never ruled out mandatory vaccination since it entered into functions in early December.But although the parties of the "traffic light" (social democrats, green and liberals) have agreed.

Mandatory vaccines would not work as a short -term measure, but could "be used with a longer term vision as prevention for next fall and winter," said the vice president of the SPD fraction, Dirk Wiese, to the newspaper, to the newspaperTagespiegel.He added that Bundestag should aspire to conclude the parliamentary debate on the matter at the end of March.

Greens also believe it is better to give more time before voting it, for all the legal consequences derived from that measure."It's not an easy decision (...)," said the head of the party bench, Britta Haßelmann, to the Funke media group.The issue would need "well -founded and very detailed deliberations," he added, although he was in favor of mandatory vaccination.

The government has agreed that the vote in the Bundestag is one of the so -called "gewissensabstimmung", that is, it is a vote of "conscience" without forcing the parties.

The measure has been interpreted as a way to save the face of the Liberal FDP.During the electoral campaign, the party appeared before voters as a platform capable of guaranteeing personal freedom, and as an opposition force to more restrictive measures, such as the obligation to vaccinate.

However, after the mandatory vaccines gained support within the new government, due to the increase in cases of this winter, parliamentary vote with a "vote of conscience" is now seen as a way of approveing the measure without theFDP has to change its official ideological line.

(Julia Dahm | Euraactiv.of)

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HAGUE

The fourth consecutive coalition government of the Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte, takes possession on Monday, a record time 10 months after the elections, with the promise to invest a lot in the fight against climate change and against the coronavirus.

The new government will allocate 35.000 million euros to climatic measures, since the Netherlands directly face the effects of sea level rise.It will also build two new nuclear power plants.

The new coalition also faces the immediate task of deciding whether the covid-199 strict covid-19 restrictions of Europe, which decay this Friday.

The most important positions of the new government include Sigrid Kaag as Minister of Economy, in one of the cabinets with more EU women, while their predecessor Wopke Hoekstra becomes a Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Routte, 54, has promised new airs.It is Prime Minister since 2010, which makes him the second leader of the European Union that has been in office for the most time, after Hungarian Viktor Orban.

Despite the 271 days of negotiations after the March elections, the coalition is formed by the same four parties as the last government: the VVD, of Central-Right, of Routte;the D66, Progressive, of Kaag;the CDA, of Central-Right, of Hoekstra, and the conservative Christen Unie.

The Dutch have broken another record, with a provisional government for almost a year, after the previous coalition resigned in January 2021 by a scandal related to social benefits.

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BRUSSELS

Thousands of protesters demonstrated Sunday in Brussels against the new regulations to stop pandemic, while European governments study stricter norms before the new omicron wave.

The acts of violence that tarnished previous demonstrations in the Belgian capital were not repeated, although the Police intervened to prevent access to the European Commission headquarters to a small group of protesters.Belgium requires showing a vaccination certificate against COVID-19 to enter bars, restaurants and cultural events.

(Euraactiv.com)

United Kingdom and Ireland

LONDON

The British Minister for Brexit, Liz Truss, reopened on Sunday the controversy with Brussels, after threatening that London is ready to parasuse the Northern Ireland protocol, and potentially torpedo the Commercial Pact of the United Kingdom with the EU.

"I want a negotiated solution, but if we have to use legitimate provisions, including article 16, I am willing to do it," Truss wrote at the Daily Telegraph.

"This safeguard clause was explicitly designed - and was agreed by all parties - to relieve the serious problems derived from all the sensitive issues that are on the table," he added.

The EU has warned that invoking article 16 could lead to the suspension of the Commerce and Cooperation Agreement with the United Kingdom, which governs relations between both parties.

Truss assumed the responsibility of post-traxit relations with the EU after the resignation of former Brexit minister, David Frost, last month.Frost resigned alleging that he could not support the restrictions against the COVID-19 of Boris Johnson's government, nor the project to increase taxes.

«I will not sign anything that prevents the citizens of Northern Ireland from benefiting from the same decisions on taxes and expenses as the rest of the United Kingdom, or (an agreement) in which the goods that circulate within our own country are subject to controls"He stressed.

Negotiations between EU officials and the United Kingdom on the protocol will resume this week.Truss will have his first official contact with the vice president of the European Commission, Maroš ŠEfčovič.

Truss's intervention, according to various analysts, is mostly intended for its co -religionists, since the conservative party in power is willing to fight another battle with the EU, after several months of growing public discontent with the Boris Johnson government.

The EU representative in London made, however, a different interpretation of Truss's statements.

«We have heard this before the government, so it is not surprised.It does not impress us too much, ”the EU ambassador to Almeida is told Sky News, João Vale de Almeida.

"What we are centered is to try to find solutions for the problems in the application of the protocol," he added.

The first year of the United Kingdom outside the sole market in the EU, in 2021, has witnessed a series of disputes with the European Commission ranging from fishing, and the status of the EU diplomatic mission in London,to the protocol, one of the main apples of discord throughout the Brexit process.

The officials of both parties have had conversations during the last six months to try to reach an agreement on the application of the Northern Ireland protocol, after the United Kingdom complained that its companies face new and onerous bureaucratic requirements and problems and problemsIn the supply chain, and that the protocol runs the risk of undermining political stability in Northern Ireland.

The protocol introduced customs controls into the goods that travel from Great Britain to Northern Ireland to avoid a "hard" customs border in Ireland.

At the end of last year, the commission took measures to ensure that medicines will remain available in Northern Ireland at the same time as in the rest of the United Kingdom, and that the medications that enter Northern Ireland from Great Britain will not need an additional labeling.However, much progress has been made in other conflicting issues, such as customs controls of a series of goods and the role of the European Court of Justice (TJUE) in conflict resolution.

Both parties consider that the elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, which will be held in May, will be key.The elections could convert the Irish Republican Party Sinn Fein, for the first time, in the largest party of a decentralized government.

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DUBLIN

Ireland began on Sunday to vaccinate against COVID-19 all children between 5 and 11 years old.Vaccines began to inoculate children with previous pathologies, and those who live with people especially vulnerable to virus, but appointments were made available to everyone last Monday (January 3).

The number of children enrolled to receive the first dose reached 82.000 until Saturday (January 8) at night, as Sunday said Paul Reid, director of the Executive Health Service of Ireland (HSE).

"Although we know that the majority of children from the age group from 5 to 11 years will go through a very mild form of the disease, in a few cases, they can seriously ill," said DR.Tony Holohan, HSE Medical Director.«Vaccines do a great work for prevention of serious illness and the disease in those who are completely vaccinated.It is good news, ”he added.

The record number of infections and the numerous personnel of personnel in many sectors, including that of health care, have tested the health service in recent weeks.

In a joint statement with the DR.Holohan and Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, Professor Karina Butler, president of the National Ireland Immunization Council, urged all parents and guardians to encourage her children to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

"As a pediatrician, I know that many parents and guardians will be very worried, and they will have many questions about vaccination against COVID-19 for their children," he said.

«However, if the evidence available to the risk that COVID-19 can mean for some children, as well as the important negative impact on the lives of all of them, in particular in the educational and social life of our children, the educational and social life, theBenefits of vaccination far exceed the risks, ”he added.

(Molly Killeen | Euraactiv.com)

Nordic and Baltic countries

Helsinki

On the eve of the new round of negotiations between the United States and Russia, Finland reiterates its right to maintain and strengthen its security and foreign policy without "blackmail" of third parties.

Last week, the president, Sauli Niinistö, carried out contacts on the situation in the EU and Ukraine with the Swedish and Norwegian prime ministers, Magdalena Andersson and Jonas Gahr Støre, respectively.He also had a telephone dialog.

For its part, Prime Minister, Sanna Marin, has done the same.Interviewed by Yle on Saturday (January 8), Marin did not want to give rise to interpretations when referring to Russia's ultimates against NATO expansion.«Finland decides his own foreign and security policy.There are no two ways to do it.We are not going to blackmail, ”he said.

Meanwhile, the debate on the future security position of Finland - and from Sweden - continues.

John Bolton, former United States National Security Affairs Advisor, tweeted on January 5 that «Finland and Sweden are intelligent by insisting on their right to enter NATO.But they shouldn't wait until it's too late to do it ".

In a column published on January 8 in the Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet, Edward Lucas, former editor of The Economist, now a member of the Center for European Policy Analysis, predicted that Russia's threats will encourage Finland and Sweden to request adherence to theNATO.

He also encouraged Finland and Sweden to announce the beginning of political, legal and military preparations to fulfill adhesion criteria.

(Pekka Vänttinen | Euraactiv.com)

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STOCKHOLM

The Swedish Prime Minister, Magdalena Andersson, was subject to harsh criticism after it was discovered that a cleaner hired for her Nucka house had an expulsion order.Swedish security services were highly criticized for this revelation.

"I have suspended all contact with the cleaning company," said Andersson through his press secretary."Even those who want to do the right thing can be exposed to dishonest people," he added.

Andersson also declared that "the responsible authorities will reach the bottom of this matter and clarify what happened".

The information that a wanted person has been working at the Prime Minister's house is "very serious" from the point of view of security, said security expert Dick Malmlund in an interview with Radio Ekot.

"Anything could have happened in the house of the Swedish prime minister, it is a scandal," he added.

Swedish security services, Säpo (Säkerhetspolisen), have declared express that it is not their responsibility to control people in private homes for high political positions.

«Are not those who pass on tiptoe for this?How can you allow a person who is illegally to clean our prime minister's house?And in addition, (someone) of Nicaragua, whose relations with Russia are, at least, good in a matter of intelligence.Who is responsible? ”He asked on Twitter the security expert Johan Wiktorin.

It is not clear if Andersson now stays in the address of Nakka or if he lives in Sagerska Huset, the residence of the Prime Minister in the center of Stockholm.

(Charles Szumski | Euraactiv.com)

SOUTH OF EUROPE

ROME

Italy provides for a rapid increase in avoidable deaths of unaccoured people.«In the next 30 days, to the current rhythm, we will have 2.500 deaths of unaccoured people, deaths that could have been avoided, ”Professor Sergio Abignani, an immunologist and member of the Scientific Technical Committee of the Ministry of Health on Sunday 24.

"That's why I keep saying that not vaccinating is like driving a motorcycle at full speed, without a helmet," he added.

Abignani pointed out to those over 50, for whom vaccination will be mandatory as of this Monday, adding that “there are more than 2 million (…) of non -vaccinated people who contribute to 75% of income in intensive care and to the60% of deaths."

«En los últimos diez días, hemos tenido un promedio de 160 muertes por día, de las cuales entre 85 y 90 no están vacunadas", agregó.

However, he was also in favor of returning to the face -to -face classes, despite the fact that the directors of several schools asked to be delayed.

«On the resumption of classes, I agree with the decision made by the Government. En un país donde los niños pueden ir al cine, a los restaurantes y a los bares, me resultaría incomprensible cerrar la escuela", dijo.

Francesco Figliuolo, comisario de la unidad de emergencias COVID-19, declaró el domingo a RAI3 que «ómicron ha trastocado todos los planes, los contagios son muchos, pero también están relacionados con el número de pruebas que superan una media de un millón al día".

«However, the exponential growth of infections is accompanied by a linear growth of hospitalizations and intensive care. Si comparamos los datos de hoy con los del año pasado, vemos que con una décima parte de las infecciones tuvimos casi el doble de hospitalizaciones y cuidados intensivos", añadió.

(Eleonora Vasques | Euraactiv.com)

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MADRID

The unvaccinated ones have 20 times more chances of dying by Covid-19.People between 60 and 79 who have not been vaccinated are 20 times more likely to die of COVID-19 than those who have vaccinated this disease, according to a Spanish study, reports EFE, an Eurractiv partner.

The Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, revealed the conclusions of the Coordination Center for Alerts and Health Emergencies after visiting on Saturday a vaccination center in Extremadura, while continuing the increase in cases of COVID-19.

People between 60 and 79 who have not vaccinated are 16 times more likely to be hospitalized for complications related to the Coronavirus, while those who have vaccinated are 30 times less likely to be admitted to a UCI, said Darias.

He added that mortality rates have decreased to 1.3% as vaccination progresses, compared to 4% that was recorded a few days after the pandemic began.

Spain currently has a 14 -day incidence record with an average of 2.722 cases per 100.000.

Meanwhile, after Christmas holiday.

«Las aulas son entornos seguros", subrayó el Ministerio de Sanidad el viernes.Quarantines will only be necessary if five or more children - which represents 20% of the class - give positive. Si sólo se registran cuatro o menos casos, se considerará «un caso aislado", y no se aplicarán las cuarentenas.

According to the latest data from the Ministry of Health, about 32% of Spanish children between 5 and 11 years old had received at least one dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 pediatric vaccine until last Friday.

Esta recomendación, que pretende fomentar «en la medida de lo posible" la asistencia de los niños a las escuelas de todos los niveles, hace hincapié en la prevención pero no establece criterios diferentes de cuarentena para los niños vacunados y los no vacunados.

With this general recommendation of quarantines for schools, the Ministry of Health intends to stop the last wave of COVID-19, but maintains the same protocol as for adults: quarantines equal to or less than seven days for people who have been in close contactWith someone who has tested and they have not been vaccinated twice.

(Fernando Heller | EUROEFE.Euraactiv.it is)

Visegrade group

Warsaw

The ruling party Law and Justice (PIS) is studying the possibility of separating from its EuroScaptic coalition partner Solidarity Poland.The party expects that to unlock the stagnation between the Government and the European Commission on the money of the EU Next Generation Fund, several media outlets reported on Sunday, including the Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper.

The pressure of solidarity Poland and its leader, the Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro, has been the main engine of the hard position of the PIS before the objections of the commission on the judicial changes that the coalition led by the PIS has pursued since it arrivedto power in 2015 and that the EU considers that they undermine the rule of law in Poland.Ziobro firmly opposes what, according to him, is an intrusion of Brussels in the Polish Judiciary.

Last year, the Commission suspended the approval of the Poland Recovery Plan, which is a previous requirement for EU resources to be released.The EU Economy Commissioner, Paolo Gentiloni, then admitted that the reason was the judgment of the Polish Constitutional Court that questioned the primacy of EU's law over the country's legal system.

«New order in the field of the rulers.Liberation of the billions of the EU Recovery Fund.Even at the expense of dismissing Ziobro del Government.Those are the main plans of [the leader of PIS] Jarosław Kaczyński for 2022. Sin todo eso, el PiS puede olvidarse de la tercera legislatura", dijo el politólogo y ex diputado Andrzej Anusz. En su opinión, «Kaczyński se prepara para un escenario de gobierno en minoría sin Ziobro".

Anonymous PIS members confirmed in statements to Gazeta Wyborcza that the option of breaking with solidarity Poland is on the table, but that the reason for the possible break has more to do with the growing power of solidarity Poland in the coalition than with the money of the European Union.

Kaczyński does not want Ziobro to have too much influence on the government and blackmail to Pis, they explain.

(Aleksandra Krzysztoszek | Euraactiv.PL)

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Prague

Beijing Winter Olympic Games have caused the first diplomatic shock between the new Czech government and President Prochino Miloš Zeman.While the current ruling cabinet criticizes the celebration of the games by China, the president has asked the Czech ambassador to China to express his support.

Zeman, who will not be able to attend the Opening ceremony in Beijing on February 4 for health reasons, has asked the Czech ambassador to China, Vladimír Tomšík, to support Beijing games.The ambassador followed Zeman's request and supported the Olympic Games in an interview for Beijing Daily.

However, the president's position collides with that of the new Czech government.

«I called (the ambassador) immediately and asked him to abstain more statements in this regard. Lo hemos hablado", declaró el domingo el ministro de Asuntos Exteriores, Jan Lipavský (Piratas, Verdes/ALE), a la televisión checa.

The Government is responsible for the country's foreign policy.

«No puedo impedir que el embajador presente la opinión del Presidente de la República", admitió Lipavský.

For Lipavský, the review of Czech relationships with China is among their priorities.The new government program promises a foreign policy more oriented to human rights.

It was expected that a diplomatic boycott of Beijing Olympic Games was the first way for the government to fulfill its promise.The Czech Olympic Committee has not even invited the Government to attend the Beijing Ceremony due to the Covid-19 pandemic and related restrictions.In addition, Czech athletes will not travel to China with the Czech Air Force, as happened in previous years.

While the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Lithuania have opted for a diplomatic boycott for games, Europe is still divided.

Según informó Euraactiv, la presidencia francesa del Consejo de la UE intentará coordinar una posición conjunta de la UE. «Vamos a debatirlo en nuestras próximas reuniones e intentaremos llegar a una posición común", dijo una alta fuente oficial francesa.

(Aneta Zachová | Euraactiv.CZ)

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Budapest

It is likely that the increase in costs in 2021 forces pork producers to increase prices by 2022, according to Tamás Éder, president of the Hungarian Association of the meat industry..The pork sector has experienced the impact of two viruses in recent years: COVID-19 and the African Swine Pest Virus, said Éder.

He added that in the first quarter of 2021, the demand shot 25% in the international market of living pigs, after which there was a constant decrease in prices until the end of the year.

However, feed prices, energy and salaries have not stopped increasing.

Éder did not give details of how much he expects to raise the price, but declared to the radio program that the price of the production of living pigs as a whole depends on 65-70% of the cost of the feed, which has increased by 25-30%.

(Vlagyiszlav Makszimov | Euraactiv.com with Telex)

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Bratislava

Miles de trabajadoras migrantes del sector de la asistencia en Austria, procedentes en su mayoría de Eslovaquia y Rumania, trabajan jornadas excesivamente largas con salarios «escandalosamente" bajos y a menudo son objeto de diversas formas de discriminación y abusos, ha revelado Amnistía Internacional en su último informe.

«Migrant workers are poorly paid and little protected.We ask the Austrian authorities to fulfill their human rights obligations and guarantee fair and safe working conditions for all internal caregivers and guarantee that the rights of migrant women are equally protected." Dice el informe de Amnistía.

It interifies that immigrant workers charge approximately 25% less than their national counterparts, which means that they charge about 10.080 euros a year on average, while the minimum annual salary in Austria is currently 17.484 euros.

Caregivers are usually sent to Austria by an agency to serve the elderly.But some have recently said that families often commission them to clean the house, take care of the garden or perform other tasks not related to their work.According to Dana Grafikavá, director of the Slovakia caregiver chamber, agencies also involve a problem, since they usually hide that information to the workers.

«Many women believe they are employed by an agency, but in reality they are autonomous, which entails responsibilities and expenses that do not know. También significa que su pensión será mucho más baja", dijo Grafiková al canal de televisión Markíza.

In Austria, caregivers usually alternate two or four weeks work shifts, after which they usually return to their countries of origin.The restrictions of COVID-19, especially during the first wave of pandemic, had a negative impact, since many had to choose between work and family.

(Michal Hudec | Euraactiv.SK)

Brief news of the Balkans

SOFIA

A special Western service has warned the Bulgarian research journalist Atanas Chobanov of the imminent threat of an attempt to murder, in Bulgarian territory.

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Bucharest

Vaccination will not be mandatory in Romania, according to the Minister of Health.Vaccination against COVID-19 is still very important, but it should not be mandatory in Romania, said Minister of Health, Akexandru Rafila.

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Zagreb

Government's electricity consumption, Parliament and the president's office is 58% more expensive than expected, while some offers that are being presented for the supply of electricity and gas are 130% higher than estimated, he reportedTHE VEčernji List newspaper.

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Ljubljana

Slovenia has decided.However, it has reduced the duration of quarantine for fear that too many people are absent from work.

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Belgrade

The Serbian Olympic Committee is involved in the Djokovic debacle.The president of the Serbian Olympic Committee, Božidar Maljković, sent a letter to his Australian counterpart, John Coates, in which he greatly protested by the treatment received by number 1 of tennis, Novak Djokovic.

Serbs block the main roads to protest the possible opening of a lithium mine.Some of Serbia's main roads were blocked on Saturday in protest of the possible opening of a lithium mine in the west of the country, as part of the Jadar de Rio Tinto project.

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Sarajevo

Dodik: The Srpska Republic is a state. Se tomarán nuevas medidas para fortalecer la República Srpska (RS), entidad serbia, anunció Milorad Dodik, miembro serbio de la Presidencia tripartita de BiH, durante la ceremonia oficial de dos días del llamado «Día Nacional de la RS".

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Tirana

The parties cross accusations after the assault on the opposition headquarters. Tras el asalto del sábado a la sede del Partido Democrático por parte de sus miembros, el Primer Ministro Edi Rama ha reaccionado al conflicto interno del partido de la oposición llamando a los líderes enfrentados «payasos" y «cadáveres políticos".

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Skopje

Kovacevski and Petkov could overcome obstacles.The designated prime minister, Dimitar Kovacevski, declared that he aspires to establish a concrete and friendly relationship with the new Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who announced his visit to the country on January 18.

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Podgorica

It is likely that Montenegro completes all the reforms for adhesion to the EU before 2025.Montenegro must follow his internal reform plan because he has a real opportunity to complete all obligations by 2025 and be prepared for adhesion to the EU, said the chief negotiator for adhesion to the EU, Zorka Kordić.

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Pristina

Nombramiento de una cara conocida como nuevo embajador de EEUU en Pristina: Jeff Hovenier, que forma parte del «paquete Biden" de diplomáticos con experiencia en la región, fue nombrado embajador de Estados Unidos en Pristina y se espera que inicie en breve conversaciones para hallar soluciones a los múltiples retos en la región.