Azerbaijan prepares for the early parliamentary elections of February 9th, 2020
Baku, Azerbaijan – The elegant and cosmopolitan city of Baku is receiving thousands of local and international observers to cooperate in the upcoming early parliamentary elections of February 9th, 2020.
The OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIH) has dispatched an election observation mission to Azerbaijan. The mission, which is led by Ambassador Peter Tejler, is composed of a 12-members team based in Baku and 26 long-term observers, who have been deployed across Azerbaijan since
Dr Asim Mollazade Parliament Azerbaijan, Democratic Reforms Party.
January 14th. Moreover, 350 short-term observers are set to oversee the proceedings during election day, including voting, counting, and the elaboration of results.
Besides the OSCE observation mission, 17,733 persons across the country have been accredited as individual observers and further 1,724 have been nominated by non-governmental organization – all this in addition to the 32,106 representatives of the candidates coming from 19 different political parties.
There are a number of international delegations currently in Azerbaijan, featuring the presence of politicians, academics, mostly from the fields of political sciences and international law, diplomats, government officials, and journalists. Their aim is to oversee the parliamentarian elections, which were called ahead of time in order to bridge the gap between the legislative power and the pace of economic, judicial, and social reforms set forth by President Ilham Aliyev. On December 5th, 2019, after the Parliament’s appeal to dissolve it and with the Constitutional Court’s consent, President Aliyev dissolved the chamber and announced early parliamentarian elections to be held on February 9th, 2020.
Dr. Fazil Mustafa – Parliament Azerbaijan – Great Structure Party.
Some 5.2 million people are registered in the Central Election Commission’s voters list, which is available online for the public to verify their own data and request corrections if needed.
The official election campaign period started on January 17th. It had featured the participation of 272 candidates, coming from 19 political parties. Eighty members of the out-going parliament (64% of the total number) will seek re-election.
Azerbaijan Parliamentarian Elections February 2020.
In the now-dissolved Parliament, 65 seats were allocated to the ruling New Azerbaijan Party, with the opposition holding 12 seats and further 38 members elected as independent candidates. The upcoming parliamentarian election will be an opportunity for new people to enter in the political arena – including women, who were previously underrepresented. During the previous legislature, women held only 20 seats (16% of the total), 2 positions as state committee’s chairperson (out of 15 such posts), and no ministerial position. In the upcoming election, women now represent 21% of the registered candidates.
The new elections will also be a new opportunity for young people, as 18 years-old youth will be able to vote or to set themselves forth as candidates. “If we pay attention to the age of the candidates, it is possible to say that the interest of young people in this process is growing,” Rasim Guliyev, political expert and head of the Azerbaijani Resource Analytical Information Center, said. “This time, 82 candidates aged 18 to 28, including eight 22 years-old candidates, registered, together with 407 candidates aged 29-39 and 542 candidates aged 40-45, and 251 candidates aged 56-66 and 43 candidates older than 67.”
Mr. Guliyev also analyzed the dynamics of voters’ turnout during the last Azeri elections. “The voter turnout was 42 percent during the parliamentary elections in 2005 and 46 percent in 2010. While the voter turnout during the recent parliamentary elections in 2015 was 55 percent, during the presidential election it was 85 percent. So, the interest in municipal [GL1] elections is not high enough.” – he explained.
In Azerbaijan, members of parliament are elected by simple majority for a five-year term, and elections are regulated by the Constitution and Election Code. Elections proceedings are administrated by the Central Election Commission. The legislation on campaign financing does not foresee direct public funding of the campaign, it sets limits for donations and expenditures, and it obliges candidates to report on their campaign financing. Parties and candidates can use their own finances, and donations can come by individual or legal entities. Anonymous and in-kind donations are prohibited.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. (Photo by Hamed Malekpour: Courtesy of WikiCommons).
By Corneliu Pivariu.
We are coming closer to the centennial celebration of Atatürk’s establishment of the modern Turkish state while 100 years have already passed since the Ottoman Empire’s sunset. During the last decades, under Recep Tayyp Erdogan’s leadership as prime minister or president, Turkey has continuously grown economically and, in spite of certain domestic divisions (see the aborted coup of July, 2016), succeeded in strenghtening an important regional geopolitical position and sought to become a global geopolitical power. Although Ankara denies officially it seeks the restoration of the Ottoman Empire, president Erdogan’s political and military moves prove otherwise.
In an article published at the end of last year by a Turkish journalist specialised in foreign affairs[1], Atatürk’s principle evoked in his celebrated speech concerning the battle of Sarakaya[2] according to which not only a single line should be defended but an entire area was recalled.
Consequently, Turkey must reconsider presently its defence zone which spreads from Qatar to Libya with Cyprus in the middle.
Assessing this fact, one finds that Turkey’s general policy of the last decades was circumscribed to this purpose and that political, military, economic and of other nature steps were taken to this end. The establishment of Turkey’s military bases abroad starting with the invasion of Cyprus in 1974 until the beginning of 2020, when the military involvment in Libya was decided (with a number of troops for training and cooperation; certain sources mention the readiness of sending around 2,000 men who fought on the Syrian front) underlines the said policy. In fact, sustaining such a number of troops in Libya generates tough logistical problems for Turkey as it has no efficient means for that yet. The display of a Turkish drone which left the country and reached Libya after landing in Cyprus only is not enough and, on the contrary, highlights the difficulties of securing the logistical support of an important number of troops in Libya.
Establishing Turkey’s military bases abroad was done by skillfully using the regional political and military developments. The most telling example besides Libya is the Tariq Ibn Ziyad base in Qatar completed in 2019. In Irak, Turkey has around 20 small-scale military bases predominantly for intelligence gathering. Six bases were established in northern Syria with a publicly unknown number of military assigned there. Most probably each of them are equaling at least an infantry company with additional units of artillery and tanks. The intent of setting up a military base in Georgia did not materialise.
Turkish diplomacy plays an important part in materialising president Erdogan’s geopolitical plans and when Ahmed Davudoglu was minister of foreign affairs (2009-2014) important steps were adopted for expanding the diplomatic component of Turkish foreign policy. It seems that now the diplomatic apparatus put in place by Turkey and its quality represents an efficient support for the foreign policy Ankara is currently promoting.
On the military component which is supposed to play an even more important role in strengthening and preserving the influence area wished for by Ankara leadership, one should mention that although Turkey has one of the strongest armies in the world (NATO’s second and the 19th worldwide, according to Global Fire Power) it is not fully equiped to meet that challenge. After the aborted coup of July 15th, 2016, the management capacity of the army was severely damaged by the arrests, sentencing and dismissals that followed thereafter and even in 2019 (163 generals and admirals – 45% of the army’s total) the effects of which could be offset within around 5-10 years.
President Erdogan (prime minister between 2003-2014, president thereafter and re-elected in 2018) rules with a firm hand the country and, through the constitutional ammendments that were adopted, he succeeded in concentrating the executive power in his hands and to compete for a third term in 2023. Hakan Fidan, the powerful head of MIT (National Intelligence Organization) who secures the president’s position played a pivotal role in annihilating the 2016 coup attempt and is considered one of the president’s main proponents.
Notwhistanding the achievements and the long political career, president Erdogan’s regime begins to present some signs of weakness and the most recent and important one was the presidential party AKP loss of Istanbul’s mayorship which was taken over by the candidate of the main opposition party, The People’s Republican Party (CHP) – Ekrem Imamoglu. The latter opposes the Istanbul Channel project[3], an idea launched by president Erdogan in 2011 and which materialisation the government intends to get started as of 2020.
The current Turkey’s economic condition is relatively healthy although in 2018 the economy contracted shortly and the national currency devaluated by 30%, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development assessed in May 2019 a gradual recovery and an economic growth of 2.5% in 2020.
Turkey, which is dependent on energy imputs, cares about making best use of its geostrategic position by building gas pipelines (Turkish Stream started in 2017 and was commissioned on January 1st, 2020) and seeks favourable conditions for exploiting the Mediterranean Sea resources in spite of the tense situation resulted from delineating the marine economic zones (see the map bellow).
Moreover, in a move intended to make it an unavoidable arbiter in the Mediterranean, Ankara signed with Libya, on November 27th, 2019, a MoU on delineating the continental shelf of the two countries which would practically divide the Mediterranean in two.
The move could hinder the 1,900 km East Med pipeline to be built by Greece, Cyprus and Israel for which the final decision should be taken by 2022 and to be completed by 2025.
Libya represents an important pole for carrying out Ankara’s plans. The situation in the country is complicated and fluid not only as a result of the domestic developments but also especially due to the conflict between the two powerful groups of prime minister Fayez al-Serraj who heads the Government of National Accord (GNA), recognized by the UN and General Khalifa Haftar who, supported by Russia, France and the United Arab Emirates, controls a great part of the country and who, during the Berlin conference, suspended most exports of Libyan crude in order to have a stronger negotiation position.
Furthermore, in spite of the recent agreement reached in Berlin with provisions prohibiting arms deliveries and foreign intervention in Libya, an important trafic including weapons and ammunition deliveries and foreign ”counsellors” was noticed at Tripoli Airport at the end of January. Turkey’s consolidation of its presence and influence in Libya is seen by certain forces as a danger that may lead to the establishment of an Islamist regime in the country given that GNA has the backing of several Islamist groups as well as the well-known support Turkey extended to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. It is believed that if there is no international intervention for a cease fire – which I don’t see materialised in the coming future – the most probable result of the Turkish intervention will be the establishment of another Islamist regime in the Mediterranean.
The accomplishment of Turkey’s plan of restoring an important influence area from the Gulf to the Mediterranean, between Doha and Tripoli, seems doable given the uncertain geopolitical developments regionally and globally. Ankara used to this end the most modern means and international media outlets emphasized that cyber attacks in 2018 and 2019 that would have originated in Turkey against around 50 state and not only institutions in Greece, Cyprus and Iraq were recently exposed.
The latest developments by the end of January 2020 prove once more the fragility and complexity of the situation in the Mediterranean and the inefficiency of the Berlin Agreement: France accuses Turkey of not observing the agreement signed in the German capital and sent to Libya Syrian mercenaries landed off Turkish vessels while Turkey accuses France of supporting Khalifa Haftar in search of benefits in the oil field. Moreover, France decided to dispatch military frigates to the east of the Mediterranean to assist Greece, a decision applauded by the Greek prime minister while visiting Paris.
Under Erdogan’s leadership, Turkey moves resolved towards maximizing its geopolitical role and position capitalizing on great players’ hesitations (the US, China, Russia). It is difficult to estimate to what extent it will accomplish such plans.
“If you are not fighting for what you want you deserve what you have”, a renowned American speaker and writer said. How great it would be if this phrase were put into practice with due regard for all principles and norms of international law. Unfortunately, the right of force is still stronger than the force of rule and therefore vae victis.
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About the author:
Corneliu Pivariu. Photographer: Ionus Paraschiv.
Corneliu Pivariu Military Intelligence and International Relations Senior Expert
A highly decorated retired two-star general of the Romanian army, during two decades he has led one of the most influential magazines on geopolitics and international relations in Eastern Europe, the bilingual journal Geostrategic Pulse.
[1]Turkey’s new geostrategy from Tripoli to Doha: “Defending an area” – Mehmet A. Kanci
[2] 23.08-13.09.1921, a battle known also as the “officers war” (in the Greek-Turkish war of 1919-1922), as a result of the great number of losses among those ranks (70-80%) during Turkish War of Independence. It is considered a milestone of the said war. According to the Turkish historian Ismail Habip Sevuk, the battle marked an important moment in Turkey’s history: “the retreat that get started at Vienna on 13th of September 1683 came to a stop 238 years later”
[3] A 50 km long channel which is to connect the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara allowing for decongesting the Bosphorus strait which was transited in 2018 only by 41,000 vessels. The cost of the project would rise to 11 bn euro while the related investments (port, artificial islands, a new town for 500,000 inhabitants etc) would add another 10 bn euro. The Turkish government estimates that the project could bring in yearly revenues of 8 bn euro. The opponents of the project argue it will damage the environment and provoke ecological changes difficult to estimate. The timeframe suggested by the central government for the project completion, i.e. 2023, is considered unrealistic by some specialists.
Minister Dr. Florian Herrmann & Ambassador Darius Semaška – Picture by Bayerische Staatskanzlei.
Monday, 27 January 2020, Munich, Free State of Bavaria, Germany: State Minister Dr. Florian Herrmann, Head of the State Chancellery and Minister of State for Federal and European Affairs and Media, received for a bilateral meeting the Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania to Germany, Darius Semaška, for a meeting on the economic ties between the two countries.
Ambassador Semaška was accredited to the Federal Republic of Germany on 29 August 2017 after having served previously as the chief diplomat in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The Ambassador entered the Lithuanian foreign service in 1992. He holds degrees in Mathematics and International relations from Vilnius and Aarhus (Denmark).
20 January 2020, Berlin, Embassy of the United States to Germany: US Special Presidential Envoy for Serbia and Kosovo Peace Negotiations, Ambassador Richard Grenell crafted an agreement in the path to normalise relations between Serbia and Kosovo; a flight and train line is to be re-establish between Belgrade and Prishtina. If implemented, the agreement would allow for the first direct air travel between the two countries since 1998. However the plan is contingent on Kosovo lifting a 100% tax on Serbian goods.
The air link between Belgrade and Prihstina is set to be provided by Eurowings, Lufthansa Group’s low-cost subsidiary. The distance between the cities is around 520 km, and takes around 5.5 hours by car.
If the two countries manage to normalise relations, Kosovo would also be able to apply for United Nations membership – a move currently blocked by the Russian Federation.
President @realdonaldtrump once again led us to an historic victory. Kosovo and Serbia today signed an agreement to create the first direct flight between Pristina & Belgrade in 21 years. Thank you @lufthansa, @NATO, @robertcobrien and the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia. pic.twitter.com/mu52kM7smm
1 February 2020: The Commonwealth welcomed its 54th member state after The Maldives’ application for re-admission was approved. . This marks the end of a process that began 13 months ago, in December 2018, when President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih wrote to the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Baroness Scotland, expressing the country’s interest in re-joining. The Secretary-General subsequently consulted with all 53 Commonwealth members and received no objections.
Maldivian Ambassador to St James’s Court thus becomes its High Commissioner, as a sign for Commonwealth membership.
Prof Jonathan Baillie, Moderator Tania Bryer, Author Suzy Amis Cameron, WWF DG Marco Lambertini and CEO Nadja Swarovski – Picture by Swarovski.
Wednesday, 22 January 2020, Davos, Canton of the Grisons, Swiss Confederation: Chairperson of the Swarovski Foundation, Nadja Swarovski invited during the 50th World Economic Forum to a discussion panel round “Action for Nature”.
Top-class guests spoke about the possibilities of preserving resources and promoting sustainability through our own food consumption, and local responses to a global challenge.
Nadja Swarovski, Suzy Amis Cameron and Gucci CEO Marco Bizzarri – Picture by Swarovski.
The ‘Action for Nature’ panel included Prof. Jonathan Baillie, Moderator Tania Bryer, Actress and author Suzy Amis Cameron, Director General of World Wide Fund for Nature Marco Lambertini and Nadja Swarovski.
Wednesday, 29 January 2020, Berlin, Germany: On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the German Nazi concentration and extermination camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the German Bundestag -Federal Parliament- commemorated the victims of National Socialism during a special ceremony.
Commemorative allocutions were delivered by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and the President of the State of Israel, Reuven Rivlin.
After Bundestag Speaker, Wolfgang Schäuble opened the hour of remembrance, compositions by the Polish-French composer and Auschwitz survivor, Szymon Laks, were performed with texts by the Polish author Mieczysław Jastrun and the Polish musician and Holocaust survivor, Ludwik Żuk-Skarszewski.
On the image: From left to right 1st row: US Deputy Head of Mission, Robin Quinville; Czech Ambassador Tomáš Podivínský; Russian Ambassador, Sergej Netschajew; Israeli Ambassador Jeremy Issacharoff; Apostolic Nuntio, ArchbishopDr. Nikola Eterović; Polish Ambassador,Prof. Dr. Andrzej Przyłębski; French Ambassador Anne-Marie Descôtes; British Ambassador Sir Sebastian Wood. 2nd row: Norwegien Ambassador, Petter Ølberg; Deputy Head of Mission – Embassy of Sweden, Johan Frisell; Ambassador of Belarus, Denis Sidorenko; Irish Ambassador, Dr Nicholas O’Brien; Estonian AmbassadorAlar Streimann; North Macedonian Ambassador, Ramadan Nazifi; Turkish Ambassador, Ali Kemal Aydin; Kuwaiti Ambassador, Najeeb Al Bader; Israeli Ambassadress, Laura Kram. 3rd row: Cypriot Ambassador, Andreas Hadjichrysanthou; Hellenic Ambassador, Theodoros Daskarolis; Canadian Ambassador, Stéphane Dion; Australian Ambassador, Lynette Wood; Costa Rican Ambassador,Lydia Peralta Cordero; Salvadorean Ambassador, Florencia Vilanova de von Oehsen. 4th row: Bangladeshi Ambassador, Imtiaz Ahmed; Spanish Ambassador Ricardo Martínez Vázquez; Peruvian Ambassador Elmer Schialer; Bulgarian Ambassador, Elena Shekerletova; Slovak Ambassador, Marián Jakubócy; Argentinian Ambassador, Pedro Villagra Delgado. 5th row: Georgian Ambassador, Dr. Elguja Khokrishvili; Icelandic Ambassador María Erla Marelsdóttir; Egyptian Ambassador, Khaled Abdelhamid; Lithuanian Ambassador, Darius Semaška; Bosnian and Herzegovinan Ambassador, Jadranka Winbow. 6th row: Austrian Ambassador Dr. Peter Huber.
Republic day honours the day when the Constitution of India came into effect after gaining independence from the British rule, was January 26, 1950 when the Government of India Act was abolished and the Constitution of Indiacame into effect. On this day India became a Federal, Democratic Republic.It for this reason that H.E.Venu Rajamony, Ambassador of India invited : Hon’ble President of the Senate Prof. Dr. Jan Anthonie Bruijn,
Ambassadors of different countries; dignitaries, friends to the Grote Kerk in the center of The Hague on 27 January 2020, to celebrate this momentous day with him. Special guest from India, Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi.
Republic Day is celebrated in New Delhi with a grand military parade, which starts at the Raisina Hill near the majestic Rashtrapati Bhawan, and continues along the Rajpath past India Gate.
The Prime Minister of India lays a floral wreath at Amar Jawan Jyoti to honour the unknown soldiers. Then, the President’s Bodyguards on horseback escort the President of India to Rajpath where he joins other dignitaries to hoist the National flag. After, the National Anthem is sang and a 21 gun salute is sounded in honour of the flag.
During the military parade, the President, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Armed Forces, takes the salute.
In his welcome address Ambassador Rajamony touched on the rich history of the venue, De Grote Kerk. He stated, this historic church dates back to the fourteenth century. It has witnessed many important events including the marriages of Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Hendrik and Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard, as well as the baptism of Princess Beatrix and then Prince now King Willem-Alexander.
Considering the close connection the Church has with Dutch Royalty, we are happy to present this evening an exhibition on the recent State Visit to India by Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima, which I hope all of you will enjoy.
Ambassador Rajamony went on with his welcome address by saying, a resume of his speech now follows. ” I am extremely happy to welcome all of you this evening for this Reception organized to mark the 71st Republic Day of India.
Mr President, it is a great privilege to have you amidst us today. You preside over a 205 year old institution which sits in one of the oldest Parliament buildings in the world still in use. You would be happy to know that the Republic Day marks the day the people of India adopted, enacted and gave unto themselves the Indian Constitution in the year 1950. India is popularly known as the world’s largest democracy and it is this Constitution which has made possible our parliamentary system. What we celebrate today is the fact that our country is governed by the rule of law with fundamental freedoms guaranteed for our citizens.
India is proud of her democracy. Over 670 million people voted in the election to our lower house of Parliament in May last year. At the same time, we are clear that the true meaning of democracy is not limited to the periodic conduct of elections. Democracy has to become a living reality for the 1.3 billion people of our diverse country which is home to every religion in the world, where 22 major languages are spoken and every state and region is an autonomous culture with its own traditions, dress and food habits.
The Preamble to our Constitution states that the purpose of the Republic is to secure for its citizens, social, economic and political justice; liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; equality of status and opportunity and to promote amongst its people, fraternity assuring the dignity of the individual and unity of the nation. I am happy in this context that joining us today is Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi,a man who has devoted his entire life to fighting exploitation of children and campaigning for their rights. Mr. Satyarthi represents the best of Indian civil society and in a democratic society, civil society plays an extremely important role as a sentinel, watch dog and conscience keeper. India’s vibrant civil society adds lustre to our democracy.
Friends, we meet today amidst difficult times. Conflict and tensions rage in many parts of the world. Global economic growth has slowed down and trade tensions simmer. The havoc caused by recent bushfires in Australia is a dire warning to all of us about the dangerous effects of climate change. The whole world is watching with bated breath how far the Coronavirus will spread and how soon, it will be brought under control. No country is free from the dangers of extremism, radicalization and terrorism nor have we overcome hunger, intolerance, prejudice and exploitation of women and children.
Addressing global challenges requires determined collective efforts and greater international cooperation. In this regard, India-Netherlands relations stand out as a success story. Our ties have never been as good as they are now. The highly successful State Visit of Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima in October last year, took place in continuation of two visits to India by Prime Minister Mark Rutte in 2015 and 2018 and a visit to the Netherlands by Prime Minister Modi in 2017.
Their Majesties were accompanied on their visit to India by four ministers and a 250 member Trade Mission, one of the largest ever to go from the Netherlands to any foreign country. The Mission attended the first ever Technology Summit between India and the Netherlands and held wide ranging discussions with Indian counterparts across various sectors. High level exchanges in 2019 also included visits to the Netherlands by Chief Ministers of two important states of India, as well as our Foreign Minister.
A strong foundation for rapid progress in the coming years has been laid through these visits and interaction at various levels. The Netherlands has consistently been one of the largest investors in India and last year it was the third largest investor with investments of around US$ 3.87 billion. Indian companies are also investing in the Netherlands in a significant manner. Total investments from India in the Netherlands was estimated at over US$ 12 billion, as of March 2018. India sees the Netherlands as an economic powerhouse. Sectors like water management, agriculture, and the maritime sector where the Dutch have world class expertise are exactly the areas where our rapidly growing, 2.9 trillion dollar economy has maximum needs.
Ladies and gentlemen, on a personal note, this is the last Republic Day reception my wife and will host in the Netherlands. We are extremely grateful for the love and affection we have received in this country as well as the enthusiastic support for all our initiatives. It was a great honour to have my book on India and the Netherlands released at Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam last September with His Majesty King Willem-Alexander receiving the first copy
Our outreach programme to schools disseminating the message of non-violence received great support. Further, I am grateful to C Post ofCuracao for bringing out recently a special postage Stamp to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. India greatly values its ties with Aruba, Curacao and St. Maartenon the far reaches of the Kingdom, where Indians and people of Indian origin form an important part of society and in particular, the business community.
Friends, if at all there is an area of tension between India and the Netherlands, it is only in the hockey field. I hope our Dutch friends will forgive us for beating them last week in the FIH Pro League Men’s Hockey Tournament in India.
Much has been accomplished and yet much remains to be done. There exists great scope for India and the Netherlands to work together in the coming days for mutual benefit and for building a world of our dreams, based on common values.
The great Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore, author of our national anthem and the first Asian to win a Nobel Prize for Literature, visited the Netherlands in 1920. He quickly acquired a fan following in this country for his poetry, as well as important message of an underlying unity amongst all religions.Thank you, Jai Hind.“
H.E.Venu Rajamony concluded his delivery by quoting a part of Rabindranath Tagore, poem.
Further on the program, The President of Senate in his speech praised India as the largest democracy in the world. He said that values of democracy, rule of law and pluralism are at the heart of Indian society and both India and the Netherlands share these values.
The Senate President said India has become a global player in information technology and Indian migrants to the Netherlands, which include students, entrepreneurs and IT professionals have doubled in numbers. He said that many innovations in the medical field are coming from India and there is a growing interest in traditional medicine system of India. He described the book India and the Netherlands- Past, Present and Future by Ambassador Venu Rajamony as a strong testimony to India-Netherlands friendship.
The program included a dance and vocal performances by Indian communities in The Netherlands. Zangam, a choir based in the Netherlands, rendered traditional Indian songs and Navrang, Sanskriti and Tandav Groups.
Throughout 2020 the city of Ghent in Flanders will celebrate its connection to one of the world’s greatest painters, Jan van Eyck. The most important part of this celebration will be in the Museum of Fine Arts (Museum Voor Schone Kunsten or MSK).
It is the largest Van Eyck exhibition ever held with more than half of the works by him that still exist worldwide. The works are contrasted with works from his atelier, works by important contemporaries and works done jointly with his brother Hubert. The core of the exhibition, the altarpiece known as Adoration of the Mystic Lamb is not in the museum itself, but in the St. Bavo Cathedral in the old centre of Ghent. However, eight side panels, meticulously restored, are on view and one may admire them up close and at eye level.
What makes Jan van Eyck so special and revolutionary? He lived from ca. 1390 to 1441 and was the Court painter to Philip the Good, the powerful Duke of Burgundy, his trusted chamberlain, sometime diplomat and spy. He was a very original painter, scholar, and scientist. In many ways, he changed the way people paint forever. In contrast to previous painters, his landscapes and cities were painted after the reality. They could, and often still can be identified in place and time.
Master of Jean Chevrot (Bruges, active 1440–1450) Vera Icon, c. 1450
Tempera on vellum
159 x 110 mm
The Morgan Library & Museum, New York.
Central above the Mystic Lamb, for example, is the Dom Tower of Utrecht. He painted the Madonna and Child as a real mother lovingly holding and looking at her baby rather than the ubiquitous stilted devotional images. His observation was as sharp as that of an eagle and he painted full size works with the minute details of a miniaturist. I
n some of these paintings he “wrote” text his subjects were supposed to have spoken in elegant Latin above their heads. If the speech were a payer or otherwise directed to God, he painted the words upside down, to make it easier to read from Heaven.
He used a technique to make oil paint dry faster, so he could work more rapidly. Though the technique was developed earlier, Van Eyck was the first major painter to use it. He was also first in grinding his pigments extremely fine, so he could put a layer over quickly dried layer giving his work a remarkable luminescence. But where his scientific knowledge comes out most vividly, is in his understanding of light, shadow, and optics.
The light in his Adoration of the Mystic Lamb appears to come from the windows in the church where it was intended to hang. The light on jewels or water in his paintings is just right. For the “Madonna at the Fountain”, he must have studied the way waterdrops fall on water meticulously. It makes his subjects three dimensional, living figures.
Jan van Eyck (Maaseik?, c. 1390 – Bruges, 1441) Portrait of a Man with a Blue Chaperon, c. 1428−1430 Oil on panel
22 x 17 cm
Muzeul National Brukenthal, Sibiu (Romania)
Philippe the Good trusted him with private diplomatic missions and with some spying on the side, like reporting on the defenses in the strongholds of rivals, perhaps even drawing them. His most important mission was to Portugal, where he had to paint a portrait of Princess Isabella, whom Philippe intended to marry … if she was beautiful enough.
Van Eyck made two portraits, one to be sent overland and one by sea. Both made it, but regrettably, both later got lost. Philippe must have liked what he saw, for Isabella became his (3rd) wife. If one needed proof that the classification of 14th century Flemish painters as “Flemish Primitives” is a misnomer one doesn’t need to look further than Van Eyck and his contemporaries. The new label of “Flemish Masters” is far more appropriate.
MS M.358, fol. 20v, Virgin and Child standing before cloth of honor. Foliate border with man with yoke, hybrid animal, man with distaff, and two dogs on crutches before rabbit holding urinal., Book of hours, Provence, France, ca. 1440-1450.
This is one of the “Must-See”, “Once-in-a-lifetime”, expositions that make a visit to Ghent almost imperative. It is a beautiful city in which much Medieval and Renaissance architecture survives and worth a special trip anyway. But this year with the van Eyck festivities and especially the exhibition at the MSK (until April 30th) it would be a shame not to go.
Photography by the Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Gen.
Main picture:
Jan van Eyck (Maaseik?, c. 1390 – Bruges, 1441) Saint Francis of Assisi Receiving the Stigmata, 1440 Oil on vellum on panel 12,7 x 14,6 cm Philadelphia Museum of Art, John G. Johnson Collection, 1917 Courtesy of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
H.E. Mr. Alexander Shulgin, the ambassador of the Russian Federation in the Hague and envoy to the OPCW was interviewed in Diplomat Magazine on November 15th about the chemical attack that took place in the Syrian city of Douma on April 7th, 2018. As a result of the chemical attack the United States, France, and the United Kingdom carried out a series of military strikes against multiple government sites in Syria. H.E. Mr. Shulgin stated in the article that, because of those attacks, the world was on the brink of a major confrontation between two nuclear powers.
Just after the chemical attack in Douma, Peace SOS received a press release titled “Massive Chemical Weapon Attack Leaves 25+ Dead , 500+ Injured in Ghouta”. The press release, which also contained photos of victims, was sent by the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organization (UOSSM), a coalition of humanitarian, non-governmental, and medical organizations.
“We were very shocked by the images of dead bodies we saw. Even children – many victims were children – died in the chemical attack.
We – as adults – are responsible for all the children in the world. Together we must build a more peaceful world. A World in Which All Children Can Play. That is what I hope to bring to the attention of all diplomats.” –the words of May-May Meijer, chair of Peace SOS
The siege and chemical attack in Ghouta
At the time of the chemical attack, East Ghouta was besieged by the government of President Assad in Syria. 400,000 people in East Ghouta were affected by shortages of food, fuel, medicines and drinking water. Citizens from Douma, which is home to 27,500 people, reached out to Peace SOS due to the scarcity of food.
“At Peace SOS we had internal discussions whether to send money or not, because we couldn’t control that the money we would provide would be used for food indeed. Therefore we decided not to give money.”
On Sunday, April 8th 2018 Peace SOS received a press release by UOSSM stating:
“Early reports indicate 25 people have been killed, and over 500 civilians have been injured, with the numbers set to rise. Many of the victims were children. The attack coincides with numerous attacks on medical facilities in Douma today, rendering the largest hospital out of service and a Red Crescent medical facility heavily damaged.”
The UOSSM coalition likewise stated that it “calls for an immediate ceasefire in Douma, for medical aid to be allowed to reach the victims of this attack, and for an immediate investigation into the use of chemical weapons as a war crime.”
Peace SOS was very shocked by this press release, whereby the NGO forwarded it to the Permanent Mission of the Dutch Kingdom to the United Nations in New York.
“It is so tragic that many children died in the chemical attack in Douma and that here are still many children dying in wars.I would like to visualize another perspective. I hope that we all will build towards: A World In Which All Children Can Play. This entails that we value all life and speak from our hearts. Invest in dialogue, peace via peaceful means, and combat poverty. Let’s be kind and open to one another.” These words are the message that May-May Meijer, the Chair of Peace SOS, would like to convey to the world.
