India is the land of sadhus, IT, nirvana, call centres and home to billionaires sitting next to slums. But now, the image of the country has changed — it is being seen as a country of gangrapes and rapists. Newspapers here were full of reports of how a 23-year-old girl in the Capital was ganraped in December last year. Even the subsequent protests got a lot of media attention. But it was soon forgotten as reporters wrote about the discrimination that women face in India and that the progress Indian women have made in the workplace did not merit a footnote in the pitiable condition of Indian women’s stories here.
The gangrape of a Swiss tourist and the attempted rape of a British tourist made the mass circulation newspaper Bild wonder if it is safe for women to travel to India. The German Foreign Ministry has updated its travel advisory for India. Women have been asked to be careful in context of recently reported cases of sexual violence in India.
Bild appears to prefer the advise that the US advisory doles out — women are advised to be careful while taking taxis at night. The Swiss Foreign Ministry also has specific recommendations. They recommend women to travel in large groups and travelling with a recognised travel guide.
Old is gold
My mother-in-law still mourns her old Miele dishwasher or her old Bosch washing machine. They were sturdy and lasted a long time before they gave up the ghost, their new replacements not so much.
Now a new German study confirms that planned obsolescence is deliberate business strategy. Things are not made to last anymore, a new study commissioned by the Green party claims that manufacturers build in flaws in their products to boost sales. The study looked at products like printers, headphones, washing machines and dishwashers and how long they last. Companies offer a two-year guarantee on their products and most printers, washing machines and electric toothbrushes start conking out after the two years have passed. Parts have to be replaced or a completely new one has to be bought to replace the old one.
Industry representatives dismissed the criticism and denied limiting the life spans of their goods. Werner Scholz, head of the German association of electronic manufacturers (ZVEI) told Die Welt newspaper said that household electronic goods have a long shelf life and claimed that of Germany’s 180 million household devices, almost 75 million were at least a decade old.
Dial J for love
Franzi loves Jay and Jay loves Franzi and their story has been mentioned on the news website Sueddeutsche.de. Franzi comes from Munich and Jay comes from a village in Tamil Nadu and how they broke the news to their parents and got them to accept the relationship- the two have made a film on it.
Franzi Schönenberger, a film student wanted to make a film on Indian artists, she fell in love with Indian artist Jayakrishnan (Jay) Subramanian and that was the end of the film on artists. The couple, instead, decided to make a film on their travails negotiating a intercultural minefield and finding acceptance in two different worlds.
Their film Amma & Appa is expected to hit the cinemas next year. The parents have got to know each other, Franzi’s Bavarian parents and Jay’s parents have met and though they are not the best of friends, they appear to like each other.
Franzi told the website that though metros like Mumbai were more accepting, in the tiny village Jay is from, she has become a curiosity. Such is the interest, that Jay’s parents refuse to travel anywhere with her since she attracts too many curious glances.
The Euro battle
The euro is not very popular in Germany. If a referendum were held on it today, the result could go either way. The Germans see themselves as the hardworking northerners who have to always help out the profligate South. No more bail outs is the mantra that the public and the media (for a change seem to be chanting).
For three years, the euro zone crisis has run on more or less the same pattern. Demands of a bailout from southern European countries, Chancellor Angela Merkel asking them to take austerity measures first, the South refusing and them helplessly giving in as the deadline approaches, Germany meets them halfway and funds are released. And austerity sets in for citizens of these countries and for the elite and banks in these countries it is business as usual.
No longer. With Cyprus, an offshore tax haven Berlin is planning to flex its muscles. German politicians led by Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble have already hinted at it in interviews, on Cyprus they are willing to play ball. The Germans want the banks and depositors in Cyprus to take some responsibility and it seems unless Cyprus comes up with a seven billion euro contribution from its banking sector, Berlin will okay a further euro 10 billion from Europe’s rescue mechanism.
Merkel’s tough stance could also be contributed to the newly-founded Alternative for Germany (Alternative für Deutschland — AfD). This party has just one demand — they want Germany to leave the euro and return to the old German currency deutsche mark (dm).
Founded by a group of economists and journalists, the party argues that the euro has subverted democracy and that all the EU nations involved would be better off in smaller and more stable currency unions. Germans it appears are giving a receptive ear to the siren song of this party and Chancellor Merkel’s conservatives are aware of it are taking a more confrontational course when it comes to Cyprus.