July 13, 2010 in Uncategorized 0

China’s Far West: One Year On

Senator Byron Dorgan, Chairman and Representative Sander Levin, Cochairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China invite you to a roundtable discussion on “China’s Far West: Conditions in Xinjiang One Year After Demonstrations and Riots” on Monday, July 19, 2010 2:00 …

July 13, 2010 in News 0

Conflict reporting under scrutiny

During Kyrgyzstan’s recent violence and humanitarian crisis, local journalists did not always meet international reporting standards.

“Based on this experience, the journalists’ should develop recommendations to ensure appropriate and responsible reporting, taking account of the specific nature of the conflict,” …

July 13, 2010 in News 0

Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani appeal

Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani will now not be stoned following a reprieve from an Iranian court, bowing to international outrage.  But she may still be hanged, notes French philosopher and writer Bernard Henri-Levy who urges support for an appeal:

What unthinkable

July 13, 2010 in Dissidents, NGOs and Civil Society 0

Bittersweet prisoner release should not relieve pressure on Cuban dictatorship

Several Cuban political prisoners and family members arrived in Madrid today, the first cohort of 52 detainees the island’s communist authorities has promised to release.

The mass release is an unprecedented move by the regime and follows a period …

Promote democracy as antidote to extremist ideology

Maintaining a “strong and consistent voice” on the centrality of human rights and democratic governance, especially in the Arab world, is vital to the war of ideas against violent extremism, a new report contends.

The Obama administration’s “de-emphasis” of reform …

The men in green return: military rule 2.0?

In the forty years up to 1990, the world witnessed more than 100 coups or coup attempts. Yet subsequent years saw a precipitate drop, and there have only been eight coups since 2005.

Between 1930 and 1980, 40% of …

July 12, 2010 in Dissidents 0

China’s dissident generation – the new Havels and Mandelas

Wei Jingsheng, Hu Jia, and Liu Xiaobo are the contemporary equivalents of an earlier generation of democratic dissidents, argues Guy Sorman, author of Empire of Lies: The Truth About China in the Twenty-First Century:

Andrei Sakharov,

Release all political prisoners, Cuba’s dissidents insist

Now that Spain has welcomed its World Cup-winning football team, a less raucous but nonetheless warm reception awaits the first group of released Cuban political prisoners due to arrive in Madrid on Tuesday.

While welcoming the release of

Arab state impedes promoting democracy through civil society

Civil society groups are vital building blocks in advancing democracy, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the Community of Democracies.

Georgetown University’s Daniel Brumberg agrees but, he asks, “how to go about this in the Arab world, where regimes …

NED grantee may be forced to quit Chechnya

The head of one of Russia’s leading human rights groups has announced that it may be forced to end its operations in Chechnya after President Ramzan Kadyrov threatened its employees.
Oleg Orlov the head of Memorial, fears that the group …