Eurotopics.net

On the anniversary of the death of the Iranian-Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in police custody, which triggered a wave of protests, the Iranian regime is using force to crack down on new protests. Several people have been arrested for allegedly endangering public security and a state of emergency has been declared in Kurdish areas. Commentators discuss the chances of real change in the country.

The annual report "Education at a Glance" put out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has given poor marks to a number of countries. It shows that Germany's education system is becoming increasingly polarised, with more students at university but also more and more young people without vocational qualifications. Meanwhile, Spain has the highest proportion of poorly educated young people in the EU, the report concludes.

A month before the parliamentary elections in Poland, a visa scandal is causing a stir. While in office, a deputy foreign minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who has since been dismissed allegedly facilitated the granting of multiple-entry Schengen visas to unauthorised persons in exchange for money. Media reports talk of between several hundred and several hundred thousand such cases. Poland discusses whether the scandal will jeopardise the re-election of the anti-immigration PiS party.

The European Central Bank has raised its key interest rate for the tenth time since July 2022. The bank hopes the 0.25 percent points increase to 4.5 percent will bring down the inflation rate, which currently stands at 5.3 percent in the Eurozone. Commentators discuss whether the move will ease the burden on consumers and what side effects it could have.