Expats Advised to Leave Bahrain Due to Unrest

As the escalations in Bahrain continues to flare up, The US Department of State had encouraged its citizens to depart Bahrain and avoid possible dangers. The UK also had weighed-in against traveling to the said country.

“Western countries seem to have taken note of the threat Bahrain’s civil unrest poses to their citizens. The UK advised against travel to the country yesterday, and now the US is asking its expats in Bahrain to consider leaving because of the “breakdown in law and order”.

Read More From eFinancial Careers

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Tide Turning Against Europe’s Immigrants

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said there are more than 200 million migrants around the world today. Europe hosted the largest number of immigrants, with 70.6 million people in 2005, the latest year for which figures are available. North America, with over 45.1 million immigrants, is second, followed by Asia, which hosts nearly 25.3 million. But is it worth the decision to migrate, especially in Europe, if the status that they get from the country is always on a limbo?

“LONDON, England (CNN) — They are cursed in cities and towns across Europe. On talk shows, in newspapers and in bars and cafes, they are dismissed as parasites, threatening social norms and culture. And when unemployment rises and governments impose cuts on public spending, the eyes turn again to the immigrants.

In France, once seen as a bastion of European egalitarianism, the issue of immigration and racial identity has shot to the top of the political agenda. Roma people, also known as gypsies, have been expelled under government orders, while the wearing of burqas and other Islamic face coverings in public is set to be banned.

President Nicolas Sarkozy has been accused of engaging in Nazi-style ethnic cleansing over the expulsions while the European Commission has threatened to take legal action over the treatment of the Roma.”

It isn’t just France, however, where expats are facing problems. Even with the world becoming a more global market, there are risks all expats face when relocating. Fortunately, the risk is usually offset by a good payment package and the experience itself, which is why despite the problems you’ll see more people picking up to immigrate now than ever.

Read More From CNN

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US Health Reforms

US Health Care system is about to be overhauled. Although it will take time to see the results, many believe that there will still be a large number of Americans going abroad to seek treatment, some even think this number might increase. “The long-awaited United States healthcare reform package became law last week. Asian hospitals treating American medical travelers will have to wait longer to see whether the bill will have a significant impact on their businesses, but US insurers will feel the reforms’ impact more quickly, and that could lead them to look more closely at international options.”

Read More from Asia Times Online

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Essential Guide For Expat Voters

With the election fever slowly building up, a bigger number of British expats are about to make use of their right to vote. “To be entitled, you have to have registered to vote within the past 15 years. If you were too young to register when you left the UK , your parent or guardian must have been on the electoral register.”

Read more from telegraph.co.uk

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The Expat Vote

With a major Dutch election looming politicians are reaching out to Dutch expats for votes. Local Dutch politicians have seen a decline in voting and many think Dutch expats are who could determine the vote. “Just one week before voters head to polling stations around the country to vote in local elections, politicians from the main parties are busy vying for the expat vote. With voting numbers declining over the years and only 58% of the electorate casting their votes in 2006, expat vote will be crucial in some areas. According to the national statistics office CBS some 453,000 non-Dutch nationals can take part in next week’s vote, but traditionally many have felt detached and excluded from the Dutch political system.”

Read more from Dutch News

Bilingual Expat Toddlers

Many expat parents whose children grow up in bilingual house holds want their toddlers to begin speaking both languages at the same time. For the toddlers this isn’t always the case. “Every pediatrician knows the frustration of trying to quantify the speech and language skills of a screaming toddler. How many words can he say? Can she put two or more words together into a sentence? Can people besides you understand him when he talks? Questions like these, put to the parents, are the quick and somewhat crude yardsticks we must use. Crude or not, the assessment is crucial: the earlier it is made, the earlier the speech-delayed child can get some help, and the earlier the help, the better the prospects.”

Read more from NY Times

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Soda Drinking Expats Beware

Long before we were expats we were always told by our mothers not to drink too much soda. Well according to a recent study conducted in Singapore they may have been right. Researches have found there is a connection between soda and pancreatic cancer. “A recently released study from the University of Minnesota finds that people who drink as few as two soft drinks a week face almost double the risk of pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest forms of the disease, according to a report by CBS station WCCO-TV… The study, which examined data from 60,000 people in Singapore over 14 years, found that regular soft drink consumers were 87 percent more likely to develop pancreatic cancer, even after accounting for factors like age, obesity, diabetes and cigarette smoking. The study only applies to consumption of regular soda, not diet soft drinks or fruit juices.”

Read more from CBS News

Opposition Leader Calls For PM To Step Down In

Light Of Election Results

Expats in Ukraine, may not have been able to vote in the country’s last election, but the have eagerly watched from the sidelines. Viktor Yanukovych beat the current Prime Minister in this recent democratic election, but the Prime Minister has refused to step down. “Viktor Yanukovych, 59, who beat Timoshenko in the Feb. 7 presidential run-off, has urged his rival to concede defeat, dissolve her government and move aside so he can start putting together a new Cabinet with majority support in the Parliament. While Timoshenko, 49, has remained silent since the election, her allies have conceded nothing. Oleksandr Turchynov, who ran her campaign, yesterday asked for a recount in more than 900 polling stations, claiming that “falsification” influenced the election results.”

Read more from Business Week

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Why Aren’t Expat Kids Learning Arabic?

Expats in Dubai may be frustrated that their children are not learning Arabic. A recent study shows that Expat parents what their children to learn Arabic, but students are disinterested.  “Arabic teachers at private schools say the curriculum prescribed by the ministry provides very little scope to effectively teach the language.Head of the Arabic department at the GEMS Wellington International School in Dubai, Lina Wright said the teaching material must change. “The books are outdated and have no relevance to the present, making it very difficult for the students to comprehend,” she said. “We need a green light from the ministry to be more creative and innovative in developing the curriculum.” Parent, Robert Lakos believes the language connects the non-locals to the culture of the country. “Teaching Arabic must be rethought,” he said.”

Read more from Khaleej Times Online

USA Expat Voting Of The Future

US Expats abroad often find voting difficult. Many even choose not to vote at all. Could there be a change that lies ahead that will redefine expat voting habits? “Internet voting is in its infancy, and still far too unreliable, but states are starting to allow it and the trend is accelerating because of a new federal law that requires greater efforts to help military and other overseas voters cast ballots. Men and women in uniform must have a fair opportunity to vote, but allowing online voting in its current state could open elections up to vote theft and other mischief. It is often hard for military voters to get ballots, and because of distance and unreliable mail service, it can be difficult or impossible for them to meet election deadlines. A year ago, the Pew Center on the States found that more than one-third of states do not provide military voters stationed abroad with enough time to vote, or are at high risk of not providing enough time. To address this problem, the new Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act requires states in most cases to get ballots to military and overseas voters well in advance of regularly scheduled federal elections.”

Read more from New York Times

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Expat Life: Joys and Frustrations

Whether your an expat in China or another part of the world you very often face daily joys and frustrations. Sometimes expats can feel themselves becoming part of the nationality they live in and it might not always be for the best reasons. So why with all the ups and downs do expats do it? “Our wonderful Chinese friends, Eric and Cat, had a brilliant answer. They read somewhere that research has found that living an expatriate life stretches our brain. It stimulates creative ideas and also makes life more interesting, as we see new images, new people and have new experiences. I started to think maybe that’s it. That is why even though like Ray, many expats living in China have those “I hate China” days, they still choose to stay here. They focus on the positives, explore Chinese history, economy and culture, while meeting many colorful characters they would not have otherwise met.”

Read more from China Daily

2010 World Economic Forum, Davos

Expats are tuned into Davos as world leaders gather to discuss economics. Key on the agenda is not only economics, but climate change as well as the US-China relationship. “The global financial crisis and the stumbling efforts to tackle climate change have highlighted the mounting evidence that China is becoming the world’s second-most influential country after the U.S. A growing number of policy makers, economists and political analysts argue that the U.S.-China bilateral relationship is now the most important of all—and that the chances of managing the globalized world successfully will be slim unless these two powers, as different as yin and yang, can cooperate.”

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The Expat Influence On The Singapore Economy

Singapore’s economic recovery has started to reveal worries among Singaporeans that there are too many expats in the country. Singapore has depended on an expat population to help increase its size both for economic and overall population growth, but now there are worries. The issues immigration and foreign workers (at all levels) is now toted as possibly the most important topic of the next elections. “On Temasek Review, a Web site dedicated to Singaporean affairs, one writer recently warned Singaporeans would be “replaced” as “3rd class citizens” by foreigners, while another said that immigration “will emerge as the single most important issue” in Singapore’s next general election, due by 2011. Immigration “kept our economic growth high but, at a tremendous cost,” says Kenneth Jeyaretnam, the secretary-general of Singapore’s Reform Party, a small opposition party founded in 2008. Relying on foreign labor to help boost growth is unsustainable, adds Choy Keen Meng, an assistant professor of economics at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University. He says a better model would involve the reining in immigration and accepting that Singapore is becoming a more mature economy like the U.S. or Europe, with a long-term growth rate of 3% to 5% a year.”

Read more from East Asian Times

Yahoo Aligns Itself With Google & German Gov’t

Warns About Microsoft Explorer

The fallout from Google announcement that it may pull out of China do to recent cyber attacks is still being felt. The Wall Street journal reports strains between Yahoo and it’s Chinese partner Alibaba. “Yahoo said Wednesday it is “aligned with Google” in condemning the cyber attacks that Google said it experienced from hackers in China. Google said Tuesday that those attacks, along with worsening censorship in China, had prompted it to consider closing its China offices. On Friday, people briefed on the cyber attacks, which affected as many as 34 companies in addition to Google, said that Yahoo was also targeted, though it wasn’t clear whether Yahoo’s systems were also breached.” Read more from The Wall Street Journal

It has also been reported that the German government is warning it users either to boost their security or not use Internet Explorer because of the recent attacks. “The Federal Office for Information Security, or BSI, urged web users to find an alternative browser to protect security. The warning comes after Microsoft admitted Internet Explorer was the weak link in recent attacks on Google’s systems. Hackers in China had pried into e-mail accounts of human rights activists. The company said, however, that the hole could be closed by setting the browser’s Internet security zone to “high”, although this limits functionality and blocks many websites.” Read more from Telegraph

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New CEO Named at Bank of America

Expats took notice as Bank of America named Ken Lewis’ replacement, Brian Moynihan, as CEO. The bank had sought to find candidate outside of the bank, but with strict US government guidelines on salary they were unable too. “As the new CEO, Moynihan faces many daunting tasks. He must juggle regulatory investigations into the bank’s 2008 acquisition of Merrill Lynch while trying to repair relationship with regulators and members of Congress who sharply criticized Lewis after the bank required billions in aid. Some of those lawmakers, including Maryland Democrat Rep. Elijah Cummings, had also questioned Moynihan’s leadership skills during a hearing on the Merrill takeover.”Brian’s wide range of experience, his relationships inside and outside of the company, and his demonstrated ability to understand business dynamics and effect constructive change made him the best person for the position,” said Dr. Walter E. Massey, chairman of Bank of America, who led the CEO search.”

Read more from AP

Copenhagen Climate Talks

Copenhagen climate talks seemed to have stalled, but world leaders have entered the seen to help negotiate.  Expats eyes are on the summit as it ends tomorrow. What will the final accord be? “The final accord may include the aggregate cut already pledged by rich nations, said Elliot Diringer, who oversees international strategies at the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, in Arlington, Virginia. That amounts to about 18 percent over the three decades. That pledge will require steeper, costlier reductions later in order to meet the 2-degree Celsius target, he said. “It is very likely going to fall short of what the science suggests is needed but this is just another step on the path” to stronger measures, Diringer said. Dimas said he expects an agreement on a 2-degree target, a commitment from rich nations to cut emissions by about 18 percent by 2020, commitments by developing nations to reduce the growth of their emissions and a pledge to revisit the targets in two to four years.”

Read more from Bloomberg

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