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search the economist welcome shiyi18 my account manage my newsletters log out tuesday april 5th 2011 site feedback home this week s print edition print edition april 2nd 2011 previous print editions mar 26th 2011 mar 19th 2011 mar 12th 2011 mar 5th 2011 feb 26th 2011 more print editions and covers » daily news analysis opinion all opinion leaders letters to the editor columns kal s cartoons economist debates islam and the arab revolutions subscribe subscribe to the print edition or buy a web subscription for full access online rss feeds receive this page by rss feed religion is a growing force in the arab awakening westerners should hold their nerve and trust democracy leader world politics all world politics this week international united states the americas asia africa middle east europe britain the world this week politics this week business this week kal s cartoon leaders the uprisings business japan and the global supply chain broken links islam and the arab revolutions india and pakistan bp s russian troubles special reports business and finance business this week economics focus business education which mba management economics a-z all business and finance dudley do-wrong businesses and insurance a willow branch the risk of an american government shutdown how to become politics-proof technology firms and health care time to stop play-acting and spit out the tea germany s political upset heads in the cloud raging bulls a green revolution online media distribution the euro zone s periphery economics they re bust admit it letters on libya japan civil-service pay the far right regional inequalities ireland indonesia education the republicans facebook briefing islam and the arab revolutions the tobacco industry all economics markets and data daily chart weekly indicators world markets currencies rankings big mac index the last gasp schumpeter i robot-manager briefing resistance to antibiotics science and technology technology quarterly technology monitor the spread of superbugs finance and economics petri-dish economies all science and technology a golden opportunity united states the civil war culture all culture style guide everybody needs good neighbours buttonwood people finally passing the census liquidity and lottery tickets european monetary policy people obituaries minority report the changing colour of cities trigger-happy spanish banks diversions audio and video audio edition audio and video library black flight recycled hard landing jfk and quantitative easing barack obama s energy policy twisted thinking the world in the world in 2011 the world in 2010 the world in 2009 the world in 2008 the world in 2007 the world in 2006 the world in 2005 the world in 2004 arizona divided lehman s mini-bonds a tale of two counties lexington the good inside the bad berkshire hathaway togetherness in libya the americas peru s presidential election unexpected loss economics focus cash machines marjorie deane internships science technology military strategy research tools topic pages all research tools economics a-z special reports style guide the risk of throwing it all away latin american political dynasties kin selection asia cry havoc and let slip the maths of war status displays country briefings china india brazil united states russia all country briefings disaster in japan i ve got you labelled materials science plutonium and mickey mouse china stronger when stricken genetics and evolution off the rails myanmar some chicken some neck books arts theories of history a long march australia strewth pakistan the good the great and the gelded otto von bismarck a great deal of ruin in a nation banyan hard to be king under bismarck british politics the indian exception middle east africa the battle for libya not everybody s cup of tea travel in tibet in pursuit of understanding morality and the brain the colonel is not beaten yet a government-in-waiting medical diagnosis of malfeasance mexican documentary give us time cash and arms

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share via on email twitter facebook politics this week mar 31st 2011 from the print edition tweet libyan forces loyal to muammar qaddafi regained several coastal towns including ras lanuf and brega which had been captured by rebels only a few days before while misrata the nearest rebelheld town to tripoli the capital was being fiercely fought over a conference on libya in london drew representatives of 40-odd governments and international bodies to discuss the latest military political and humanitarian plans for handling the crisis colonel qaddafi s foreign minister moussa koussa fled to london see article demonstrations in syria were suppressed by security forces leaving scores dead in several towns including latakia a stronghold of the minority alawite sect to which president bashar assad belongs in an address to parliament he said he would lift the 48-year-old state of emergency but did not say when see article yemen s president ali abdullah saleh facing mass demonstrations and growing dissent within his ruling circle offered to transfer his powers to a caretaker government while retaining the presidency until elections are held protesters declined the offer which was made to the head of an islamist party that had once been a partner in mr saleh s government an explosion in a weapons factory in the south killed at least 150 people sectarian relations soured in the middle east after iraq s prime minister nuri al-maliki a shia praised the mainly shia protesters in bahrain and criticised sunni saudi arabia for helping to suppress them on behalf of the ruling bahraini family which is also sunni hassan nasrallah leader of hizbullah lebanon s powerful shia party-cum-militia also aroused anger among sunni governments in the gulf by praising the bahrain protesters and likening the ruling family there to libya s qaddafis see article at least 55 people were killed in the iraqi city of tikrit saddam hussein s home town after suicide-bombers thought to be linked to al-qaeda took a score of hostages including several members of the local council prompting government forces to storm the building guerrilla forces allied to alassane ouattara the winner of last year s presidential elections in côte d ivoire took several towns in the west from troops loyal to laurent gbagbo the sitting president who refuses to step down a civil war is under way a battle for abidjan the commercial capital may begin soon see article combining hard and soft power in his first big speech on the conflict in libya barack obama laid out the reasons why he thought america should be involved mr obama has been criticised on the left and the right for committing america to join a military effort to protect libyan civilians but he said that america could not brush aside its responsibilities to our fellow human beings many saw the speech as

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the firmest statement yet of the principles behind his policy towards intervention abroad see article in california negotiations broke down over a plan put forward by jerry brown the democratic governor to plug the state s deficit mr brown said the legislature s republicans had presented him with an ever-changing list of collateral demands as he sought their support to hold a ballot in june that would ask voters to extend a range of temporary tax increases safety measures japan bowed to the inevitable and said it would decommission four of the nuclear reactors at the stricken fukushima dai-ichi power plant raised levels of radiation were found at a village 40km from the plant and in nearby seawater the un s nuclear watchdog suggested widening the 20km exclusion zone see article myanmar s military junta formally dissolved itself and handed over power to an elected parliament and a new president thein sein a former general the former dictator than shwe resigned as head of the army members of aung san suu kyi s party denounced the handover as a fake see article india s prime minister manmohan singh invited his pakistani counterpart yusuf raza gilani to watch a world cup cricket match between the national sides earlier the countries senior home-affairs officials agreed jointly to investigate the 2008 killings by pakistan-based terrorists of 170 people in mumbai see article australia s ruling labor party was trounced in state elections in new south wales once its stronghold it had governed the state for 16 years see article no change anticipated as expected canada s minority conservative government fell after it lost a no-confidence vote in parliament the conservatives are forecast to finish first in the election scheduled for may 2nd a court in honduras cancelled three outstanding arrest warrants for manuel zelaya a former president who was deposed in a 2009 coup backed by the legislature and judiciary mr zelaya would still have to face corruption charges if he were to return from exile angela s ashes in germany angela merkel s ruling cdu party lost an important election in the state of badenwürttemberg which it had governed continuously for almost 60 years boosted by renewed concerns over nuclear power following the disaster in japan the greens did well and will now head a coalition the first time the party has led a state government see article silvio berlusconi attended a closed-door pre-trial hearing in milan relating to a tax-fraud case his first court appearance in eight years the case is one of four hanging over italy s prime minister the most scurrilous which involves an underage prostitute comes to trial on april 6th tensions between bosnia s fractious ethnic groups mounted when the eu s representative irked croats by quashing an election-commission ruling that had paralysed politics in the federation the muslim and croat part of the country bosnia has been without a functioning government for months some fear that the deadlock could turn violent up to half a million people joined a union-organised protest in london against the british government s spending cuts separately some activists staged sit-ins inside retail outlets held by companies they accuse of avoiding taxes others defaced walls and smashed the windows of banks hotels and posh shops see article share via on email twitter facebook

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share via on email twitter facebook business this week mar 31st 2011 from the print edition tweet the natural disasters that hit japan on march 11th continued to have an impact on supply chains especially for carmakers many factories that produce components remain either shut or damaged causing a problem for manufacturers that rely on just-in-time delivery of parts honda for example temporarily reduced production at its north american factories and said it would review the situation based on the availability of car parts see article ros-nyet a proposed share swap and plan to combine energy exploration in the arctic between bp and russia s rosneft was dealt a blow when an arbitration panel decided to extend an interim injunction on the deal the injunction was imposed in february after russian shareholders in another bp venture tnk-bp argued that they should be given first refusal on any new bp project in russia the arbitration panel s decision is a particular setback for bob dudley bp s chief executive who used to be in charge of tnk-bp see article the north sea oil industry kept up its complaints about a £2 billion 3.4 billion levy outlined in the recent british budget which pays for a cut in petrol duty norway s statoil postponed new investment it had planned for two north sea oilfields saying that the tax significantly impacts the economics of the projects ge continued its spending spree in the energy business by agreeing to buy most of converteam which specialises in electrical-power systems for $3.2 billion a class-action lawsuit which began in 2001 and alleges that walmart pays its female workers less than male staff in equivalent jobs reached the supreme court up to 1.5m women could benefit from punitive damages if the six original plaintiffs win their case the question before the court is not whether walmart discriminated against the women but if the class-action claim can cover so many people the judges will decide by july if the case can proceed david sokol hitherto seen as a possible successor to warren buffett as boss of berkshire hathaway resigned from the company to manage his family s money his departure was overshadowed by revelations about his dealings in shares of lubrizol ahead of berkshire s $9.7 billion proposed takeover of the company see article still in recession there was more dismal news from america s housing market as the s&p/case-shiller home-price index for 20 cities fell by 3.1 in the three months to january from the same period in 2010 s&p said none of the data pointed to any form of sustained recovery meanwhile republicans in congress voted to end the home affordable modification programme which helps homeowners avoid foreclosure the white house has said it will veto the move valeant a canadian drug company made a $5.7 billion hostile offer for cephalon a smaller american rival and gave notice it wanted its own people to sit on cephalon s board valeant is

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financing its bid entirely with debt takeovers among drug companies may become more contested as patents expire and they seek growth through acquisitions mukesh ambani the richest man in india set up a joint venture with an american hedge fund to enter india s financial-services industry this comes less than a year after he and his brother anil scrapped their contentious non-compete compact under which assets from their late father s reliance empire were split choosing one s friends google agreed to settle charges brought by america s federal trade commission that it had used deceptive tactics and violated its own privacy promises when it set up google buzz last year google received thousands of complaints when it launched its social network from users whose email contacts were shared publicly the ftc instructed google to implement a privacy programme to protect consumers information the first time it has issued such an order and said google would be subject to privacy audits for the next 20 years amazon presented a service that enables users to buy and store music in the online cloud and access their tunes from any computer or mobile device that works on the android operating system but not apple s ipod or ipad amazon launched cloud drive without licensing agreements with some music companies sony music said it was disappointed apple and google hope to introduce their own cloud-storage services soon see article lenovo china s biggest computer-maker entered the tablet market by unveiling the lepad the device has a 10.1-inch 26cm screen similar in size to the ipad s and operates on android the lepad is only available in china for now from the print edition the world this week about the economist online about the economist media directory staff books career opportunities contact us subscribe privacy policy terms of use site feedback help share via on email twitter facebook copyright © the economist newspaper limited 2011 all rights reserved advertising info legal disclaimer accessibility

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share via on email twitter facebook kal s cartoon mar 31st 2011 from the print edition tweet from the print edition the world this week about the economist online about the economist media directory staff books career opportunities contact us subscribe privacy policy terms of use site feedback help copyright © the economist newspaper limited 2011 all rights reserved advertising info legal disclaimer accessibility

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share via on email twitter facebook the uprisings islam and the arab revolutions religion is a growing force in the arab awakening westerners should hold their nerve and trust democracy mar 31st 2011 from the print edition tweet the sight of corrupt old arab tyrants being toppled at the behest of a new generation of young idealists inspired by democracy united by facebook and excited by the notion of opening up to a wider world has thrilled observers everywhere those revolutions are still in full swing albeit at different points in the cycle in tunisia and egypt they are going the right way with a hopeful new mood prevailing and free elections in the offing in libya syria and yemen dictators are clinging on to power with varying degrees of success and in the gulf monarchs are struggling to fend off demands for democracy with oil-funded largesse topped by modest and grudging political concessions so far these revolts have appeared to be largely secular in character westerners have been quietly relieved by that not that they are all against religion many americans in particular are devout but by and large they prefer their own variety to anybody else s and since september 11th 2001 they have been especially nervous about islam now however there are signs that islam is a growing force in the arab revolutions see article that makes secular-minded and liberal people both arabs and westerners queasy they fear that the arab awakening might be hijacked by the sort of islamists who reject a pluralist version of democracy oppress women and fly the flag of jihad against christians and jews they worry that the murderous militancy that has killed 30,000 over the past four years in pakistan see article may emerge in the arab world too islam on the rise in libya the transitional national council slowly gaining recognition as a government-in-waiting is a medley of secular liberals and islamists there are libyan jihadist veterans of iraq and afghanistan among the rebels though not in big numbers an american general detects flickers

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of al-qaeda among the colonel s foes being helped by the west raising uncomfortable memories of america s alliance against the russians with afghanistan s mujahideen before they turned into al-qaeda and the taliban the muslim brotherhood which has branches all over the region is the best-run opposition movement in libya and egypt and last week s constitutional referendum in egypt went the way the brothers wanted it to its members have long suffered at the hands both of western-backed regimes such as hosni mubarak s in egypt and of anti-western secular ones such as bashar assad s now under extreme pressure in syria in tunisia too the islamists previously banned look well-placed on the whole these brothers have gone out of their way to reassure the west that they nowadays disavow violence in pursuit of their aims believe in multiparty democracy endorse women s rights and would refrain from imposing sharia law wholesale were they to form a government in any of the countries where they are re-emerging as legal parties all the same the brothers make many people nervous at one extreme of the wide ideological spectrum that they cover they are not so far from the jihadists many of whom started off in the brothers ranks the leading palestinian islamist movement hamas an offshoot of the brotherhood has been delighted by mr mubarak s fall it has in the past carried out suicidebombings in the heart of israel and refuses to recognise the jewish state some liberals say that more extreme islamist groups are riding on the more moderate brothers coat-tails in the flush of prisoner releases hundreds if not thousands of egyptian jihadists are once again at large don t despair islam is bound to play a larger role in government in the arab world than elsewhere most muslims do not believe in the separation of religion and state as america and france do and have not lost their enthusiasm for religion as many christian democrats in europe have muslim democracies such as turkey malaysia and indonesia all have big islamic parties use the interactive graphics but islamic does not mean islamist al-qaeda in the past few carousel to browse our years has lost ground in arab hearts and minds the jihadists are coverage of unrest in the middle east a small minority widely hated by their milder co-religionists not least for giving islam a bad name across the world ideological battles between moderates and extremists within islam are just as fierce as the animosity pitting muslim christian and jewish fundamentalists against each other younger arabs largely responsible for the upheavals are better connected and attuned to the rest of the modern world than their conservative predecessors were share via on email twitter facebook moreover some muslim countries are on the road to democracy or already there some are doing well among arab countries lebanon with its profusion of religions and sects has long had a democracy of a kind albeit hobbled by sectarian quotas and an armed militia hizbullah iraq has at least elected a genuine multiparty parliament outside the arab world in turkey malaysia and indonesia islam and democracy are cohabiting fairly comfortably many devout muslims among the arab protesters including members of the brotherhood cite turkey as a model its mildly islamist government is showing worrying signs of authoritarianism these days but it serves its people far better than the generals did iran which once held so much sway is not talked of as a model theocracy does not appeal to the youngsters on the arab street still muslim countries may well make choices with which the west is not comfortable but those inclined to worry should remember that no alternative would serve their interests let alone the arabs in the long run the old autocrats deprived their people of freedom and opportunity and the stability they promised it is now clear could not endure algeria s civil war in the 1990s

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remains a horrible warning against depriving islamists of power they have rightfully won islam will never find an accommodation with the modern democratic world until muslims can take responsibility for their own lives millions more have a chance of doing just that it is a reason more for celebration than for worry from the print edition leaders about the economist online about the economist media directory staff books career opportunities contact us subscribe privacy policy terms of use site feedback help share via on email twitter facebook copyright © the economist newspaper limited 2011 all rights reserved advertising info legal disclaimer accessibility

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share via on email twitter facebook india and pakistan a willow branch after cricket diplomacy india and pakistan should try some other ideas mar 31st 2011 from the print edition tweet war aside nothing captivates india and pakistan as much as an encounter between their national cricket teams the two countries met on march 30th in a tense world cup semi-final in mohali north india the home side won but pakistan s players acquitted themselves unexpectedly well watching together from the packed and raucous stands were manmohan singh india s prime minister and his pakistani counterpart yusuf raza gilani whom he had invited for the game and a spot of post-match talk it was a rare and hopeful gesture for two countries usually plagued by mutual suspicion now the two nuclear-armed powers need to build on it previous efforts at cricket diplomacy have come to nothing one pakistani dictator zia-ul-haq went to india for a game in 1987 another pervez musharraf followed in 2005 and it must be said that the omens do not look especially auspicious now neither government seems strong enough to make concessions india s is battered by scandal pakistan s is widely derided see article moreover pakistan s army calls the shots on policy towards india making intransigence more likely at least they re trying as if that were not enough the big issues are intrinsically tough india wants pakistan to arrest those maybe including its own spies behind the 2008 mumbai attacks in which pakistani-based terrorists killed 170 people in india s commercial hub pakistan wants talks about the status of muslim-majority kashmir which india regards as an integral part of its territory still the two sides are trying unusually hard at the moment their most senior home-affairs officials met this week and at last agreed to investigate the mumbai atrocity jointly foreign ministers get together soon meanwhile pakistan seems to be sending fewer militants into kashmir these days the question is how can india and pakistan do more than show willing given the contentiousness of the big disputes they should start with modest matters and small

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first steps cross-border trade is a good place to begin at the moment it hardly exists a few smoky lorries laden with onions and rugs cross at wagah the main border post officially bilateral trade is worth $2 billion a year unofficially a few billion more a pitiful tally set against india s booming business with china 60 billion or even africa 45 billion this is deliberate the two governments impose tariffs and other constraints on each other it is also shortsighted consumption and trade should be encouraged in order to create an economic incentive for peace and if that helps boost pakistan s beleaguered moderates then so much the better next face-to-face contracts should be encouraged too few people academics politicians artists or tourists cross the border it was big news in india that a few pakistani cricket fans got visas for the match reporters are kept at a distance only two pakistani correspondents are allowed in delhi and two indians in islamabad under tight restrictions juvenile rants in the blogosphere replace fruitful human contact last the two countries should do more with regional bodies such as the south asian association of regional co-operation which makes diplomatic encounters and quiet bilateral talks easier to arrange that could prove helpful one day if the rivals need cover for making politically difficult concessions as governments in europe like to blame brussels when imposing unpopular spending cuts naturally modest measures are only a start they still have to broach many tricky subjects but better to try that once confidence has begun to grow as good batsmen know big innings are built by notching up single runs early the flashy shots can follow later from the print edition leaders about the economist online about the economist media directory staff books career opportunities contact us subscribe privacy policy terms of use site feedback help share via on email twitter facebook copyright © the economist newspaper limited 2011 all rights reserved advertising info legal disclaimer accessibility

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share via on email twitter facebook the risk of an american government shutdown time to stop play-acting and spit out the tea the republicans are not being serious about the deficit mar 31st 2011 from the print edition tweet thirty billion dollars is a lot of money for anyone except america s government in washington it is a bagatelle about what the feds spend in three days or less than 2 of the predicted budget deficit for this year yet in the peculiar battle that is now raging over the budget for a fiscal year already half over $30 billion is all that now separates the republicans and the democrats who have been bickering for the past 14 months over the details because neither side thinks it can afford to back down the risks of a government shutdown are rising fast without an agreement the government will run out of money on april 8th some irresponsible people on both sides of the political aisle think that a temporary shutdown would not matter all that much a fair few democrats hope that the republicans will be blamed for their intransigence as they were at the time of the last shutdown in 1995-96 though they may be disappointed on that score since public opinion swung against the republicans in 1996 only after their leader newt gingrich made a fool of himself over a seat on air force one those of a tea-partyish persuasion imagine that they will be politically rewarded by their supporters for sticking to their guns and that the only good government is one on enforced leave in the short term it is true a shutdown would be far from catastrophic soldiers will continue to fight aircraft will not collide social security pensions cheques will mostly continue to be automatically sent out but it would still be highly disruptive not least for government employees who will not get paid and it will inconvenience people and businesses in countless ways that is no small matter while the recovery remains so fragile more worrying than a shutdown itself would be its implications if the politicians attempts to resolve one year s budget end in acrimonious collapse what hope is there of reaching agreement on issues that require both sides to take much more political punishment later in april another

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