ICE - special | All stories

Six months before Poland becomes a member of the European Union the country has been taken to task for not measuring up to EU standards. The annual report of the European Commission, the EU's executive body, describes Poland as the worst prepared of the ten future members of the Union.

In Hungary the early onset of winter has already claimed 11 lives. Those most exposed to the elements and the hardships of the winter to come are of course the homeless. To help the many thousands of people without a roof over their head - telephone hotlines have been set up across the country. They are collecting reports on the whereabouts of the needy and send social workers where possible. Petra Hajdu reports.

The next in our series 'Bridging Europe' travels to the Austrian capital, Vienna. The 'Reichsbrücke' - or 'Imperial Bridge' - is arguably the capital's most important bridge and a major part of Vienna's landscape and history. Katy Duke takes a look at the way this bridge unites two very different Vienna's.

In the Czech Republic Dagmar Damkova recently became the second woman in Europe to referee a men's first division football match. Her rise to the top has not been easy but - as she tells Radio Prague's Ian Willoughby - now she's had some success, the sky is the limit.

In Poland women's reproductive rights are never far from the headlines. Now deputies of the ruling SLD party of social democrats are proposing to liberalize the strict anti-abortion law. They want a return to abortions on demand up to the 12th week of pregnancy if a woman can prove she is in a difficult family or financial situation. Existing legislation allows abortion only in cases of irreparable damage to the unborn child, when the life or health of the mother is in danger or when pregnancy results from rape. But Polish women are sceptical about

Slovenian Radio and Television are celebrating 75 years of radio and 40 years of television. During these years the broadcaster became an integral part of Slovenia's media landscape. But now public broadcasting in Slovenia faces challenges.

In Slovakia women sacrifice much if they want a highflying job. And the wage difference between men and women in the same position can be as much as 23% in favour of men. Some of the worst discrimination is in the banking sector

According to a Budapest based Institute, former Secret police and nomenclature from communist days have gained high positions in governments across Central and Eastern Europe. The Institute for Transitional Democracy and International Security say they're concerned about the influence these people are having on politics and policies. Radio Budapest's Agi Varga talks to the Director and founder of the institute Sebestyén Gorka

The constant shifting of Silesia across Polish and German borders over several centuries has created a unique ethnic mix and a regional self-consciousness. The dominant spoken language is a Germanised dialect of Polish. But whatever their ethnic origins, the Silesians themselves have developed a separate identity that borrows liberally from both Polish and German.

At midnight on December 31 1992, the Czechoslovak federation was formally dissolved and two independent states - the Czech Republic and Slovakia - came into being. Creating Europe's newest border. Since then, the two have moved in different directions. But when they become a part of the European Union and after that the Schengen zone, their citizens will once again travel freely between the two states as they did 11 years ago. What does this mean to Slovaks and Czechs?