captioned by the national captioning institute >> welcome to "european journal" from dw tv. croatian is hoping to join the european union in 2013. the prime minister will show whether the country is serious about tackling corruption. still working, the french pensioners who cannot afford to retire. paris hilton on the walk of

hame in poland. the internet is seen as a force for good and bad. for three teenage girls that took their own lives, authorities are blaming the internet for bringing them together. they made a suicide pact after meeting on line. they decided to end their lives using carbon monoxide. an unthinkable act that has people thinking about the role that the internet can play in a suicide. >> her ordeal began five years ago. >> after my mother died, my father began raping me. it is a topic that is completely taboo. there was nobody i could talk to.

>> she tried to kill herself three times. even today, and she is not really sure that she should be happy that she failed. back then, she began corresponding online with other teenagers in similar situations. she was only 15 when she began chatting the suicide forum. >> i wanted to find people like me. somebody who could help. now it is just an interaction. >> it does not always end at that. 3 girls and filled a tent with it carbon monoxide gas from disposable grills. they had a suicide pact on a forum. they committed suicide together almost 10 years ago. and like 17 teenagers in a

series of suicides in england in 2008. she now only visits on mine sites monitored by therapists. her need to talk about suicide is not alone. >> there are sites that are not supervised that anybody can write whenever they want without censorship. it is definitely a risk. if you are vulnerable and somebody says that they have tips for you to commit suicide, they could be responsible for your death. >> they are now taking a look at online incitement to suicide. in cases where suicide is glorified, which is illegal concerning minors. >> this is a discussion about how to do it as quickly and

painlessly as possible. >> if i understand you correctly, they are trying to break off contact with parents and other people that might help. >> the prosecutor's office can shut down problematic internet sites within germany. most of the operators are based outside of europe. outside of germany, the laws protecting minors are not enforceable. as soon as we tax something, we put the url in the module. it is part of 20 philtre programs. if parents have been stalled people to program, they can be ensured that the pages will not display. this helps protect young people from harm. experts say that it is only a start. what people are considering suicide need is help.

>> our job is not to bar access to the internet. our job is to help people solve their problems outside of the internet. >> the internet is appealing because it provides a safe and anonymous forum. they sometimes shut down a site when it has attracted attention. she says that this is nothing more than a shell. >> there is always an end to all -- alternative. like a small forum on the side until the larger one can reopen. that is what will happen here. >> for now, for her, it is still an important source of support.

>> many britons are fed up with the european union. nothing new about that. euro skeptics say that democracy and 04 -- over regulation costs britain billions of pounds. they had a referendum about withdrawing from the union. he is claiming that the euro crisis is having a chilling effect on the u.k. economy. >> here in the heart of british democracy, the union jack has pride. the eu flag is not given quite the same prominence. the yellow and blue symbol of europe is not as popular as the domestic model. the british have always preferred to set themselves apart from the mainland.

one of the largest financial centers of the world long served as a representation of british might. then the global crisis hit. former bankers used to be heavy hitters in the financial world. today, they make suits out of fine cloth and are only beginning to earn a living from it. >> there was a period about two years ago when there were a lot of people coming in to buy their suits. then they had to come in and collect their suit. with a huge wave of redundancies, there are not that many people back and buy suits. >> they also lost their jobs they say that british politician should he be lesson that they learned to focus on their own

interests and to move the center of power away from brussels and back to london. >> there is a lot of centralized policy makers in brussels that do not really understand what it was like making these decisions. they are not good for business. it is not good for the u.k. >> the british have always been critical of the eu, even though britain has been a member state for decades and reaps benefits from access to the european market. the fear that britain will lose its independence carries more weight than rational arguments. >> you can see here that the ranking international institutions, places like the world health organization, the united nations, nato, are all favorable to the british republic. the eu ranks near last.

>> there is no mistaking the eu skepticism. the eu has become an even tougher sell. nobody even once a free shopping bag. >> we can see how nationals of the european countries are really struggling. >> even that the british government is stoking anti-eu sentiments. david cameron and blames the crisis on the crisis that has gripped many nations. >> people seem to misunderstand the reasons behind the debt crisis. they do not realize the eurozone

as a whole is a very healthy economy. growth is higher over there and inflation is lower. they focus that a few of the member states have had problems with debt. >> for mark and other eu critics, these arguments do not hold water. they want to leave the european union. they are campaigning for britain to have a new vote on union membership. >> there are a lot of people associated with the campaign that say that this could do quite well as outside of the european union. they would cite the examples of norway or switzerland. >> they say that they want what is best for britain. at the same time, they are canny businessman and knows that europe also provides them with

many advantages. >> the issue of delaying retirement age is creating kellogg of unrest in europe. even when they reached the age that they can claim their pensions, they can barely survive on the money that they've received. the only answer is to go back to work. they are coming out of retirement to go back to their bakery. >> even before the first baguette left the oven, the small bakery made headlines. it is opening day for the best known bakers in france right now. he spent the entire night in the bakery. he is 84 years old. they have been retired 12 years but now have gone back to work

in their own business. >> we do what we can at our age. some do more, others less. we are probably in the middle. >> they invested their entire savings in the bakery. they had a pension of about 1000 euros per month. they found retired life a bit boring. he thought that the shop seemed an obvious choice, to them at least. >> the banks laughed at us. you are much too old. nobody will lend you money. we invested in it ourselves. >> we cannot work as hard as young baker's. young people have much more energy. we will manage. >> and for their investment to pay off, they have to sell 400 baguettes per day.

pensioners have to work to survive. almost 600 kilometers away, anybody who is looking for a bicycle or cycling equipment knows the shop and its owner. he has tested thousands of breaks in her life. her shop doris uphold spare parts that are unavailable anywhere else in france. >> i met my husband in 1947. he opened the shop. since then, i have known exactly how this all works. >> her husband died over 30 years ago. she has kept the shop running ever since and has no plans to quit. even though she is part of the generation that could retire at 60, for her, that is out of the question. she cannot quite relate to the

people that are protesting the increase in retirement age. >> what would you do at home at age 60. you have a garden or something like that or you spend your day in front of the television. that is not life. or people start to drink. >> life as a pensioner could be a delight. drinking 80 in front of the cafe. instead of sipping, this man is serving. he is 68. after two years of retirement, and he realized that his pension was not enough. he and his wife decided to reopen their cafe. >> after so many years, we should have a good pension, and good enough to survive. we are healthy and we can still work. we enjoy it. many people cannot live without

work. they need it. last fall, france was hit by massive protests. the pension reforms drove many young people to the streets. now they're planning to launch the reforms ahead of schedule. unions are planning protests. >> pensioners will have to work even though we have over 3 million unemployed in france. that is not acceptable. >> and these miniature hats are being made by volunteers. at the little brothers of the poor. the volunteers are also pensioners. they are helping take care of the people worse off than they are. the proceeds will go to hell needy pensioners. >> i tell myself every hat helps

our organization. with this, we can arrange a meal for one pensioner or several. the pensions keep getting smaller and the problems keep getting bigger. >> i remember the golden age. back then, we did not have unemployment. if you lost your job on friday, you had a new one by monday. i worked part-time and i took a break to raise our children. that would not happen nowadays. >> and he needs 400 baguettes for tomorrow. suzanne and george plan to spend three more years running their then they say that they will finally be ready to retire for good. >> and the crisis which is

engulfing europe at the moment is making the european more cautious about accepting new members. quite understandable. croatia is due to join in 2013. all eyes are on its capital where the former prime minister is facing charges which are linked to a multi million the euro bribery scandal. he is not the first politician to be accused of this sort of thing. how croatia deals with this scandal will show brussels how serious it is in its fight against corruption. >> he still has a police escort. nobody rolls out the red carpet for him anymore. he has to enter the courtroom through the back door. he stands indicted of corruption. the case is historic in europe. >> it has also attracted immense

interest. public opinion is already against him. >> everyone has his opinion about what is happening here. all future week -- weaknesses -- >> these suspicions are not unreasonable. there is a question about how he can afford a multi-million euro villa. he also stands accused of taking a bribe in the mid-1990s. according to the indictment, he and sure that the croatian government took a major loan in exchange. he was deputy foreign minister at the time. the tax prime minister was said to have helped a hungarian oil firm to gain control of its

croatian counterpart. in exchange, he allegedly received 10 million euros. prosecutors say that the deal was probably cut here, in the back room of a restaurant at an elite tennis club. this video shows it hit the prime minister together with the boss.the two men sit in the back room. he takes the battery out of this cell phone. without speaking, he takes a note pad out of his pocket. he considers it and then writes on the notepad. he appears to like what he sees. a journalist knows as much as anybody about the case. he was hired to write a book about him. >> he is a very complex character.

he is not very representative for the common eastern european politicians. he is a self-made man who comes from a very poor background. >> he was elected to the post of prime minister in 2003. before that, he had transformed his political party from an ultra nationalist right-wing party to a conservative one with broader appeal. he is fluent in several languages. he steered croatia towards the european union and was welcomed by its political elite. in the end, the eu took part in his downfall, demanding action against corruption. >> he certainly played a role in the associations. also, it is a change in

political culture. >> he is being held at a prison. a long fall from what was once croatia's most powerful politician. the people of croatia are no longer surprised by this turn of events. >> even if the media thinks that he is guilty, he does deserve a fair trial. >> i think that the party has already lost. >> the role of the party was low in the polls. the party itself stands accused of corruption. its assets sets have been frozen by court order. >> his affair has had a great impact on his party. if media reports are at that -- are accurate, there was a system in place to extract money from

state party is set and use it to finance members. >> his party is fighting for its future. he is fighting not to end up behind bars. >> we go to poland now. full marks to the people in charge of opening up a giant center in poland. thousands of people turned out to see the invited celebrity, none other than the american socialite paris hilton. the reception she was given was baffling. there was a hollywood style walk of fame star in her honor. take a look of what a girl would do to get new shoes. >>paris hilton has just arrived from new york.

she is here to open a new shopping center. there is a problem. she is here but one of for 20 suitcases got left behind. it is the one with all of her shoes. the crowd of 200 journalists will have to wait until members of her entourage can go by enter a new pair. it is time for the main event. in a borrowed pair of 1000 euro pumps. before the fun can begin, there is the question and answer segment over a nice glass of champagne. >> i will tell you. >> how does she like poland so far? >> the people here are so beautiful. everyone is good looking. i have noticed that since i have been here. polish people are very hot.

>> its seems that poland gets two thumbs up from paris. it is no hollywood, but there is still room for a little bit of glamour. just like the walk of fame in los angeles, paris gets her very own star. the mayor helped do the honors. he is the man wearing the glasses. the trip would not be complete without a little bit of shopping m. lots of photographers. after all, paris in poland makes for good publicity. with a white rose in hand, she is ready to oblige. first, there is a a fox fur to look at. something warm to keep the cold polish nights at bay.

another essential, and iphone with studded crystals. she can use it to take some snapshots. the people here will certainly remember her. >> just the fact that paris hilton is here is a big deal for me. i know that we are not a third world country anymore. we are developing. >> polan says thank you, paris. as a parting gift, you can keep the shoes. >> we keep you in touch with all of the important things happening in europe. i was reading paris hilton's website, a polish blogger described her as an angel descending from heaven. if you have any thoughts, send us an e-mail. thanks very much for watching.

for all of the team here in brussels,