Democracy activists are expressing concern at the detention of Madock Chivasa, chairperson of Zimbabwe’s Youth Forum and spokesperson for the National Constitutional Assembly, after he was arrested Thursday evening along with several other activists.
Five members of the Chivasa family …
The significant role played by democratic and civil society groups in ensuring Iraq’s provincial elections passed relatively smoothly is only now becoming clear. The February poll saw little violence and registered gains by non-sectarian secular forces as voters turned against …
Democracy assistance is a critical factor in overcoming jihadist ideology but should be explicitly de-linked from counter-terrorism and national security policy, according to a new report out today. Substantial investment in counter-radicalization, “helping mainstream Muslims provide hopeful and practical …
Check out this entertaining trailer for the One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival, an official cultural event of the Czech EU presidency, which takes place in Prague from 11th to 19th March. A selection of the …
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has come under fire from human rights groups for apparently prioritizing economic issues and climate change on her recent trip to China. Some contend that in accepting Beijing’s insistence on “noninterference”, she fails civil society …
All states have neighbors, but only Russia has a ‘near abroad’. Paul Goble once excoriated analysts who used the term, with its implicit recognition of Moscow’s imperial claims. But he now finds it useful – so long as it’s reciprocal, …
There remain “serious challenges” to the promotion of democracy and human rights in the Middle East, despite “some notable steps forward,” according to the U.S. State Department. Egypt, Iran, Tunisia, Jordan and Syria present particular cause for concern, notes the …
An unholy trinity of formidable obstacles impedes the emergence of democracy in the Middle East, argues Michael Mandelbaum: the region’s prevailing version of Islam; the ethnic, religious, and national sectarianism; and anti-Western sentiment. A credible approach to cultivating …
It’s been said that a pessimist is simply a well-informed optimist. But the very well-informed Thomas Carothers cautions against the democratic pessimism prompted by the rise and resilience of global authoritarianism, the backlash against democracy assistance and the end …
Today’s transfer of Mikhail Khodorkovsky to Moscow for trial, coming shortly after a unanimous jury verdict dismissed charges against Anna Politkovskaya‘s alleged killers, highlights the dubious integrity of Russia’s judicial process.
At a time of growing disillusionment with …