How do you identify? Is it with a town, a group of people, or maybe with a country? It’s a fascinating question, and one I considered last week as I reviewed the letters page in this latest edition of the Guardian Weekly.
As I read through the contributions, and where they came from, I wondered just how you saw yourselves. With readers in 173 countries, there’s bound to be a range of answers!
Do you connect to a suburb or a city? A you embedded in an enclave or an exclave? Do you identify most strongly with an organisation, or with a cause?
That notion of identity is an important theme on the news pages of the latest edition. As she marks 10 years as German chancellor, just who is Angela Merkel? She has outlasted many on the political stage, including George W Bush, Hu Jintao and Manmohan Singh, Nicolas Sarkozy and Silvio Berlusconi. Our cover story looks at what has defined the Merkel era, how Germany has evolved, and considers what comes next.
Inside the paper, we continue our extensive coverage of Europe’s refugee crisis, in which Germany has, of course, played a crucial part by accommodating thousands fleeing poverty and strife. In addition to Guardian reporting, our spread of coverage includes partner papers the Observer and the Washington Post from the Balkans and the Mediterranean, analysing how attitudes and opinions are as fluid as the people on the move.
Several stories were evolving as we went to press, including a meeting of European Union leaders to attempt to agree steps to ease this humanitarian emergency. For the latest headlines, please do visit the Guardian’s website by clicking here.
As you receive this edition, Chinese President Xi Jinping will be touring America. Beijing correspondent Tom Phillips asks whether China truly loves ‘Big Daddy Xi’ – or fears him – in a fine piece of analytical writing.
In addition to the news and analysis, we carry several feel-good stories this week. In Africa, Mozambique has been declared free of landmines after an effort that has lasted more than 20 years. More globally, malaria death rates have been reduced by 60% since 2000 – saving more than 6 million lives, according to UN agencies (though they say more work needs to be done). And in the Middle East, we report on the scholar who has painstakingly reconstructed a leather manuscript more than 4,000 years old after it was rediscovered in the Egyptian museum in Cairo.
In UK news, the identity of Labour continues to be a focus as new leader Jeremy Corbyn settles into the role. We take a look at his first seven days. Two words for you here: action packed.
On the Comment pages, the Guardian’s executive opinion editor, Jonathan Freedland, argues that Corbyn must expand his appeal and engage with a wider audience to have a real impact.
European opinion-setter Natalie Nougayrède also commands space in our Comment section, arguing that the west must resist overtures to bring Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in from the cold.
To some, it would seem there’s a world of problems out there. In keeping with this theme, our deeper-read Review section considers 70 years of the United Nations. What does the UN do with its multibillion budget? Has the organisation changed lives? And what motivates the folks who work there? Senior writer Chris McGreal delves into the detail.
From development to Discovery, we shift to Pakistan and consider the plight of leopards. In Pakistan’s northwest, the big cats are more feared than global terrorists, putting these astonishing creatures in peril.
On our Books pages, we review Salman Rushdie’s latest writings, where parallels to the author’s own life abound. And we interview controversial French author Michel Houellebecq, who talks about his most provocative novel yet.
The Culture pages profile Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, and what an unexpectedly enjoyable meeting this is. It’s one of the best pieces in the back of the book. We also review stage, screen and song.
Our Diversions pages, including the ever-amusing Notes & Queries, are where identity truly comes to the fore. Thank you Joan Dawson for sharing snippets of your life in our Good to Meet You column. It’s a treat to meet the readers who help create our own unique Guardian Weekly sense of self.
No matter where you come from, and how you identify, you are part of our Guardian Weekly community. I hope you find the edition insightful as well as entertaining. Please do share you thoughts. You can email me by clicking here.
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