Week in review
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This week: Balancing power in Ukraine; Italy’s pseudo freedom of movement; And introducing trash art … a summer exhibition that's totally rubbish!
Power to the ... president?
In his first Independence Day speech, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said the balance of power in the country must change in order for progress to be made.
In other words, more power for the President and less for the parliament.
Speaking at a ceremony at Independence Square, Kiev, Mr Yanukovych called for the Ukrainian constitution to be reformed in order to strengthen his clout.
He said that Ukraine’s improvement of ties with Russia will contribute to European integration.
In the past, Mr Yanukovych has always looked more towards Moscow than to the West for support.
But his critics are now warning that political and media freedoms are being threatened under Mr Yanukovych and that he is trying to turn Ukraine into a mini-Russia.
France’s creeping shadow
Following France’s crackdown on the Roma this month, neighbouring Italy could be next in line to expel European citizens.
Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni praised President Nicolas Sarkozy's move to deport Roma people and says he would like to go a step further.
In an interview with an Italian daily newspaper, Maroni lobbied to expel all EU citizens who do not meet minimum requirements on income and housing.
The move has set alarm bells ringing in the corridors of civil rights NGOs as they point fingers at France and Italy for discrimination, but according to the EU, neither country has broken any laws.
Although the free movement of labour is a fundamental right within the bloc, citizens of the newest member states Romania and Bulgaria face some restrictions on their right to work in other countries.
One man's trash is another's treasure
A new summer exhibition at the Museum of Croydon in the UK is all about … rubbish!
From fleece made of out of plastic bottles to old tyres turned into buckets and plastic jerry cans, anything is possible when it comes to recycled goods.
In an elaborate showcase of items that were once considered rubbish, the curators of the show seek to shed light on this unique kind of art and explore how communities in the developing world make inventive and creative use out of the things we in the West throw away every day.
The Treasures from Trash exhibition is on in the Museum of Croydon until 30 October
