Society

Lmrabet was sent to jail in 2003 for writing about Morocco’s king and his supposed real estate interests. He was also banned from media. Finally he has created ‘Demain’, an online newspaper directed from Barcelona. It has the same name as the publication he had in Morocco, which was shut down by King Mohammed VI’s regime.

A pilot programme set up by the Catalan Police in one of Barcelona’s districts will enable tourists to report minor thefts on city streets from their hotels, without needing to go to a police station. The programme will be in place on a trial basis in July and August in 18 hotels. If successful, it could be applied to all Barcelona hotels.

An International inspection in 2009 issued 14 recommendations to improve security. Two years after, the International Atomic Energy Agency came back to certify that most of the issues had been addressed and the rest were in progress of being fully solved.

Mowafak Kanfach asks for the Syrian regime to be taken to the International Criminal Court. He is living in Barcelona because he was forced to leave his country because of political reasons.

Researchers from Barcelona’s Hospital Clínic and the University of Oviedo (Asturias) have sequenced Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia’s entire genome for the first time. Mutations in four genes have been identified as one of the illness triggers. The study was published last Sunday in the prestigious journal ‘Nature’.

The NGO against xenophobic discrimination denounces that public expenditure cuts hit immigrants hardest. 'SOS Racisme' also denounces police abuse cases against immigrants and alerts on the raise of extreme-right in some Catalan towns.

An international study led by a Catalan team of researchers finds that the vaccine is not only effective in women between the ages of 9 and 26 , but in women older than 26. Women up to 45 years old could use this preventative vaccine. The study is published this Wednesday in the ‘British Journal of Cancer’.

In 2010, Catalonia exceeded the pollution limits for nitrogen oxide defined by the European Union, but not for the polluting particles. The large number of diesel vehicles would be one of the main causes. An extension until 2015 has been asked by the Catalan Government.

The old International Press Centre of Barcelona closed earlier this year due to financial problems. A group of journalists has created the Foreign Correspondents Association of Catalonia (ACEC). They are in negotiations to use a space in the former Sant Pau Hospital.

Staff drain and changes in training programs, the main causes according to the Catalan Nurses Association. In the last years, Catalonia has been “exporting” nurses abroad, mainly to the United Kingdom, the US and Italy.

This last weekend Catalonia’s F1 Grand Prix and the Barcelona’s International Automobile Fair were held. These two events emphasise the weight the motoring industry has in Catalonia. Actually, Barcelona Metropolitan Area is one of Europe’s largest motoring industry hubs.

Researchers from Barcelona’s Hospital Clínic find other indicators about the beginning of Alzheimer’s. They recommend using alternative biomarkers to get an early diagnosis.

The Universitat Ramon Llull (URL) was created 20 years ago and brought together several prestigious educational institutions, such as ESADE, IQS and Blanquerna. Over the last 20 years, the university has gained recognition and is now on the European Association of Universities’ board. Banco Santander’s President Emilio Botín, the Spanish Minister for Education and the Catalan political class gathered for the 20th anniversary celebration.

The study is funded by Catalan savings bank ‘la Caixa’ with data at Spanish-level. It reveals, contrary to xenophobic statements that immigrants bring more revenue to the state than the costs they generate. In addition, their presence also brings more services. “We came to the conclusion than the impact of immigration in the Welfare State is clearly positive”, states the coordinator of the study.

This initiative offers free food to people in need and it is a platform involving many organisations. The Food Bank already assists 118,000 people in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area and warns that “the figure is growing”.