News digest: 13 August 2012

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FINLAND: How a smartphone can track your children (Helsingin Sanomat, link): "Parents can find out the location of their child with an accuracy of a few metres"



France kicks out Roma, again (euobserver, link): "Roma in France's northern city of Lille were expelled from their camps over the weekend as police dismantled the settlements, despite promises by President Francois Hollande to end the practice"



See also: EU to look at evictions and repatriations of Roma in France (euronews, link)



GERMANY: An eastern German mayor stands up to the Neo-Nazis (Der Spiegel, link): "Germany's far-right National Democratic Party plans to hold a 'festival' this weekend in the eastern German town of Pasewalk. But locals, led by the mayor, are trying to stop the neo-Nazi event. It is the first time the area's population has stood up to the extremists - and it may turn out to be a losing battle"



GREECE: Flares thrown into makeshift mosque near Piraeus (Ekatherimini, link): "Suspected member sof the extreme right-wing Chrysi Avgi (Golden Dawn) attacked a makeshift mosque in Kaminia, near Piraeus, late on Friday, using flares, causing alarm among Muslim worshippers but no injuries"



Greece expects 15,000 Syrian refugees, says border guards' union (Ekathimerini, link)



GREECE: Illegal migrants eye charter flights (Ekathimerini, link): "Faced with tighter police controls at Greece's western ports of Patras and Igoumenitsa, human traffickers are increasingly using smaller airports across the country to smuggle illegal migrants into Western Europe"



GREECE: Young Iraqi fatally wounded in Athens (Athens News, link)



GREECE: Xenios Zeus triggers thunderous reaction (Athens News, link): "In its first week, the Xenios Zeus operation has already sparked political and social turmoil all over the country"



MALTA: Interview: Challenging negative stereotypes (Malta Independent, link): "As one of the founders of the Migrants’ Network for Equality, Osman Dicko is keen to stress that many negative beliefs about African immigrants are unfounded. Assuming that they are criminal, or that they live off social benefits, is very much wrong"



MALTA: Minister asks the police to remove beggar from streets (Times of Malta, link)



MALTA: Police take action against sergeant (Times of Malta, link)



NORWAY: Norweigans uncomfortable about beggars (The Foreigner, link): "As the plight of and the debate about what to do about the Roma People continues, Norwegian politicians and police advocate a renewed begging ban"



NORWAY: Poor help for elective immigrants (The Foreigner, link): "Norway’s state systems work to help the discriminated integrate, but those moving for love often have to manage themselves"



UK: EU students say permit delays are putting degrees at risk (Guardian, link): "Our plans are in tatters, say Romanian students, because we need permits to work while we study"



UK: Deportation looms for the man who stole an ice cream (The Independent, link)



UK: 'More firms' breaching data rules (Belfast Telegraph, link): "Increasing numbers of businesses are breaching staff data rules, with hefty fines for those who allow private information to be accessed easily"



UK: New IPCC investigation into custody sergeant in Sean Rigg case (The Independent, link): "A new investigation into the custody sergeant who was found to have lied under oath at the Sean Rigg inquest has been launched by the Independent Police Complaints Commission amid criticisms about its original investigation which found no wrongdoing against any of the three officers involved in his death"



UK: Refused: The experiences of women denied asylum in the UK (pdf) by Women for Refugee
Women
: "
Our new report, Refused, shines a light into the experiences of women who have been denied asylum in the UK. Our research shows that nearly half of women who claim asylum in the UK have experienced rape, and nearly half have been arrested or imprisoned, but most are denied asylum in the UK"



UK: Riots jail sentences 'punish the poor the hardest', says Tottenham MP (Guardian, link): "David Lammy, speaking at the international book festival in Edinburgh, also backs 'compulsory civic service'"



UK: Terror law review highlights collateral damage (IRR, link): "In June, the second review of terrorism acts was published by David Anderson, QC, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation. Given the limits of his remit, he has provided a circumscribed critique. Nonetheless, the report points towards possible reform of the now well-entrenched terrorism laws"



USA: Google fined $22.5m by US regulator after it "misrepresented privacy assurances" to web users (Out-Law.com, link)

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