>> hello, welcome from brussels. in this week's program, we examine how the strauss-kahn affair has more women speaking out about sexual assault. and also this week, the cross-border war over bohemian bark beatles. norway's young politicians fight on after the july massacre. and how tweed is weaving its way back into fashion. the french attitude towards many people elsewhere would

call sexual harassment would be a bit different. there's a sense that men will be men. but the dominique strauss-kahn affair is changing attitudes. after charges were dropped in the u.s., the former head of the implets m.s. is facing a new trial in his native france for attempted rape. more and more french women are start together speak out about sexual assault and harassment in a way they haven't done before. >> what better symbol of french seductiveness than the mowl inn rouge. but the playful image of sexuality has recently come under scrutiny. when seduction turns into sexual assault, women have traditionally been under pressure to stay silents. it was only after the allegations surrounding dominique strauss-kahn in new york that a writer filed a complaint for attempted rape against the former i.m.f. chief. it involved an incident dating back to 2003. her mother originally talked her out of pressing charges, fearing her daughter would be

defamed. >> a few weeks after the incident, i talked to dominique strauss-kahn. he said he had completely lost his head. he had had a sexual relationship with me several years before, and when he saw my daughter, he said he was overwhelmed and he had to have her, too. >> the attack on her daughter might have never come to light had it not been for inquisitive foreign journalists. >> it became such an enormous issue. on may 15 i suddenly had the choice of either saying that my daughter had lied, which isn't true, or telling the truth, that, yes, there had been a previous case in france. it then made sense for my daughter to press charges. >> and strauss-kahn will now indeed face a court in paris.

>> whatever application has been made or is being made today -- >> his arrest in new york in may sent shock waves through france, especially since he was seen as a likely contender in next year's presidential elections. at this counseling center for rape victims, advisors say women have gained more confidence in the wake of the strauss-kahn scandal. >> it especially affected women who felt small when facing a person with power. they told themselves, if a hotel maid finds the courage to speak out about what happened to her, then so can i. >> an estimated 75000 women a year are raped in france, but only 10% of the cases actually make it to court. martine is one of that minority. she worked in the town hall in a paris commune and was repeatedly abused by the mayor.

eventually support from other women encouraged her to press charges. >> i was scared of him, not because he was physically brutal, but because of his position as senator and mayor. i thought, if i say something, they'll throw me out. but i needed the caretaker job because i'm raising my children on my own. >> martine won the case, but at a price. while her tormenter only received a fine, she lost her job and apartment. >> when you take action to stop sexual harassment and violence at the workplace, you get accused of destroying this wonderful french model of seduction. they say that everyone who tells the sad truth, like the media, is destroying our culture. >> a magazine and newspaper

written for feminists marks the cliche of the seductive frenchman. this is a country, after all, where the privileges of the powerful are often considered to include sexual domination of junior staff. macho bravado is traditionally played down. >> i was extremely shocked to see intellectuals defending strauss-kahn. they forgot about their feminist convictions just because he's their friend and they belong to the same cast. >> the dominique strauss-kahn affair might soon fade into the woodwork, but the debate about where sexual seduction ends and begins has only just started in france. >> a war has broken out between the czech republic and austria nothing too violent, unless you happen to be a bark beetle.

a playing of bark beetles has invaded the bohemian forest which straddles the czech-austrian border. they're destroying the trees. but authorities on both sides are at loggerheads over the best way to deal with the bugs. he face's tiny, but formidable enemy. bark beetles live in the bohemian forest. it's his job to locate and exterminate them before it's too late and he's under time pressure to do so. >> these are mature beetles attacking the tree. then they create a new generation. the female bark beetles lay the eggs in these grooves. they turn into larvae, which eat away under the bark. >> he says that one infested tree will infest five or 10 others. once a tree is infested, it's too late, and there are no

natural barriers. the bohemian forest is largely made up of mono-cultures. the consequences are devastating. the authorities say around 1/3 of the national park on the czech side is affected. 180 square kilometers. >> this is where bark beetles wreaked havoc. in the last two years, 2009 and 2010, we cleared the trees and destroyed the beetles. >> no beetles, but no trees either. the new head of the national park introduced chemical beetle traps. this promptnd an outcry on eek psychological grounds. even politicians got involved. but the forest rangers themselves aren't interested. >> chemicals have been used to

combat the bark beetle ever since the national park was founded. it's nothing new. the debate is just about politics and the media. out's all a lot of noise. -- it's all a lot of noise. >> environmental activists don't only accuse the park authorities of using chemicals, but of using them wrongly. above all, the pheromones used to trap the beetles. >> it wasn't just the poisoned trams, they also placed the pheromones on living trees. what that means in practice is that the beetles are then attracted to the trees, and the number of trees cut down increases. >> together with the adjacent bavarian forest, this constitutes the largest park in central europe. thousands of trees have been axed here in pursuit of the bark beetle.

some areas are officially protected, but they're still not safe. once bark beetles have arrived, there's no stopping them. and what's more, they don't recognize international borders, like the one here between the czech republic and austria. some of the protected zones straddle the border. the monestary owns almost 6,000 acres of borderline forest. >> the basic problem is that core zones were implemented right on international borders. that made it impossible to take action against the progression of bark beetles on the other side. >> the czechs don't want trouble with their neighbors and are now working flat out to halt the beetles at the edge of the core zone. around 900 afflicted trees along a 500-meter long second shan was stripped. the austrians have praised the joints efforts and the heads of the czech side appreciates it.

>> i am happy that everyone involved is satisfied. we achieved our goal in the limited time available -- getting rid of bark beetles from an extra zone along the border area. >> but environmental activists are angry. they claim that the protected zone has in fact been reduced in size. local politics, they say, are primarily interested in attracting tourists. allegedly the mountain, which is inside the protection zone, is a prime target here. >> we believe the real objective is to open up the forest so that they can introduce a ski lift. that's what they're really planning. >> is this purely deforestation under the cover of playing control? as long as the arguments continue, there is little hope of stopping the beetles.

>> july's bomb attack on oslo and the massacre of young people on the norwegian island was an attack at the very heart of the country's political world. as we know, those killed were all attending a young labour party summer camp. many of the survivors say it has only strengthened their resolve to remain in politician, tone sure there are no curbs on democratic freedoms. the first local election since the attacks have given labour the best effects in 20 years. amongst those standings were survivors of the lone gunman. >> johanns survived, and the experience left a lasting impression on him. he's going to his hometown where he's standing for the labour party in the local elections. two of his friends from the party were killed in the shootings on the island. the bats still bear their names, and now johanns wants to campaign on their behalf.

>> it's what i want to do. before i was interested in other things. i like to listen to music and composed my own. but when someone wants to kill another person for what they believe in, then you don't have any other choice. >> the world needs more love. johanes is staying true to this slogan. he's happy the prime minister has promised more tolerance and democracy in the wake of the attacks. he thinks the country has changed for the better. people are friendlier and there's less conflict in society. that's good for johanns. since that day on the island, life has been a challenge. but norway wants to be different than, say, the united states. you can't kill people and at the same time demand that they

become americans and supporters of democracy. we, on the other hand, confront every single extreme right wing and racist comment with reasoning and openness. >> they don't want a society that excludes certain elements, and they're proud that norway has reacted differently than many foreign observers expected. >> maybe we're more aware of what could happen. after all, we know what has happened in other countries. if we had done the same, it would have led to more conflict in norway, too. we're such a small country, but nearly everybody was directly affected. >> norwegians have come together across the political divide. he is standsing in the same constituents as johanns, but for the rival progress party. many have accused the party of stirring up resentment towards immigrants. and even the man behind the

attacks was once a member of the party. for him, that came as a shock. but he says the progress party has nothing to do with such extremist views, and he doesn't see why the party should change its policies. they are friends, but they stand at opposing ends of the political spectrum. he survived the events on the island and now he hopes the party will reconsider its policies on immigrants, but she refuses to blame the progress party, norwegians's young politicians wants to remain level-headed, even if they don't agree on all issues. >> i think we would have reacted in the same way if the perpetrator had been a muslim. just as collected. we norwegians go about things differently than the americans, for example. we have a different culture. she thinks things would have been different if the perpetrator would have been a

muslim, but she thinks he's right when it comes to norway not reacting like the united states. in his opinion it means seeking reconciliation instead. he puts that reaction down, who is not only venerated by his only party, but also, by the opposition. johanns was also in the crowd to cheer his hero. for him he embodies the values he believes in, and the values he now holds so dear. >> the american dream is a lonely dream. norwegians, on the other hand, dream of community and everyone here really does get the same opportunities in life. >> he was careful not to shut himself off in the wake of the attacks. he wanted to be close to the people. and for johanns, it was this comfort and consolation that he was looking for. he says the compassion shown to

him by other survivors and his compatriots in general was touching, but he doesn't believe he'll be able to get over his experience any time soon. >> i can't remember how my life was before. everything centers on it. even if you don't think about it or talk about it all the time, even if everything doesn't revolve around it, it's there the whole time. >> have the attacks really changed norway? for johanns, it's too early to tell. >> germany has a large turkish community. the links go back to the 1960's when the turks were encouraged to come as guest workers. but now many turkish people, particularly from the poorer region, say that they're being unfairly denied visas to enter

germany. the turk iraq -- turkish government say they're being discriminated against. >> the visa section of the germ nan consulate in istanbul is not todd's favorite place to be. he came here last year to apply for a visa to attend an event put on by the hamburg soccer team. he had a written invitation and a plane ticket and thought getting a visa would be nothing more than just a formality. >> i got my passport back on the day i was due to fly, about three hours before the flight. my visa application had been rejected. as a free-lance journalist, i had no proof of a regular income. i had never been denied entry before. >> the writer has traveled to other countries for many years. he was so annoyed about his refusal of enter tri-that he decided to collect -- enter tri-that he decided to collect stories from other turkish

rejectees. he had been planning a trip to germany last year to see friends and visit museums in hamburg. her application was rejected, and she still doesn't know why. >> the reason given was that i'm not welcome there. i have my apartment, my studio, my husband, my mother. >> the german authorities say turkish citizens want to use visas as a way of getting into germany to stay. a visa hotline received more than 1,000 calls within a month from angry turks, many were particularly critical of staff of the german consulate. >> one case that was reported to us might be of interest to women's organizations. the visa section wanted the applicant's husband to vouch for her and give her permission

to travel. the german foreign office declined to comment on the visa issue, yet pointed out that more than 70,000 visas are issued in istanbul alone every year. foreign minister has questioned the sense behind the current process. what's more, courts and even a government report say it contradicts a 1980 treaty between turkey and the e.u. and if the regulations are not relaxed, travel restrictions could damage the country's economy. after all, germany is turkey's biggest trade partner. >> we frequently hear trade fair exhibitors saying that they will go to fairs in paris or amsterdam because there are fewer hurdles. and that is a problem for us. >> turkey is booming, and

unlike many other countries, shows no signs of crisis. foreign investors are flocking there, and turkish companies are expanding abroad this. factory has been working with german steel for years. this businessman regularly travels to germany for work reasons. he provides dozens of documents to get a visa, but this summer he was stopped by unsatisfied border guards. the incident prompted him to write an outraged letter to the german chancellor. >> in july the border police at dusseldorf airport wanted to know if i had a return ticket, how much money i had with me, and they wanted to see my credit card. we already had to do all that when we applied for a visa. why are we being asked for the same thing again in front of other passengers? it's humiliating. i don't have to tell anyone how much money i have in my pocket. >> but there are alternatives

to german steel. japanese suppliers were stanting in the same queue as the turkish businessman and invited him to visit japan without a visa. whether in terms of trade or culture, turkey is moving closer to the rest of europe. against that backdrop, turks are growing increasingly intolerant of germany's visa restrictions. >> anyone wearing a hareds tweed suit is -- harris tweed suit is considered to be bull and conservative. but that's all changing. the fabric appears to be trendy again and the traditional tweed weavers on the eeleds are working hard to keep up with demand. and so are the sheep. >> there's no escaping the dominance of nature. life on the contractingy, yet beautiful islands, is nothing for the faint-hearted, and that goes for the sheep as well.

a little rubber band in the right place is all it takes to sterilize a lamb. the pain doesn't set in immediately. he's worked with sheep since he was a child and knows them like the back of his hand. wild winds frequently visit the rugged and thinly populated landscape. the aisles of harris and lewis have little by way of employment and what there is is connected to nature. besides fishing and a little tourism, the islands are home to the woolly fabric known as harris tweed. despite tweed's international renown, two years ago poor sales threatened the survival of the spinning works in callaway. but instead of closing, the factory acquired a new manager with new ideas.

manual work, though, remains an essential part of making tweed. the machines are old and often don't work properly. but donald is on hand to help. >> so the question is, where is the solution? >> he's sure he knows what the problem is, but doesn't waste words while looking for it. >> the machines are pretty old as well. >> yes. >> so it's quite a challenge? >> yes, quite a challenge. >> so how do you keep up with the machines, sir? >> well, i've been with them all my life. >> creating a piece of fabric from 672 different threads is painstaking work. and mccull lom has built new life into the business. she has to rely on her

workforce's experience. this loom has been used in the creation of new design since the 1950's. her nose for new trend is as fine as the patterns in the tweeds themselves, and she's introduced new colors. >> there's a move back now. people want to know where the fabric is coming from, where the product comes from. this is a bit of romanticism, if there's an ecological story, that's what they're looking for. >> tweed can be used to make almost anything, from bags to shoes and beyond. and on close inspection, its connection to the natural world becomes self-evident. both the colors and patterns contained in its weave are reminiscent of nature. the island sheep are shorn once a year. residents are happy to do the sheering themselves, even

though one coat only fetches about 50 cents. the islands might be home to a wool industry, but the local raw material is not used to feed the tweed machine. >> it's too rough, too rough. >> ok. >> the men are at their happiest out in the wilds of nature. >> yes, because you can still make a meal for yourself on the craft and it won't cost you but just the price of the salt. >> and he allows his sheep the same freedoms he so enjoys himself. >> we know winter's on the way. when we start talking about wearing tweed. that's it from european

journal. for me and all the team here in brussels, goodbye. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--