One of the greatest geopolitical challenges facing the West in the 21st century is the rise of China as an economic and military power. China’s role as a “currency manipulator” has become a U.S. Presidential campaign issue, affecting …
Follow Us ¬
October 31, 2012
in Afghanistan, Asia, Democracy Assistance, Elections, Islam and Politics, Middle East and North Africa, National Endowment for Democracy, NGOs and Civil Society
0
Afghan 2014 presidential poll a ‘democracy gambit’ as NATO withdraws?
Afghanistan will hold presidential elections in the spring of 2014 in a vote “considered crucial for their country’s stability and security after more than 11 years of war,” AP reports:
Afghan politicians and the country’s foreign backers hailed …
October 31, 2012
in Asia, Burma, Democratic transitions, Human rights, Islam and Politics, National Endowment for Democracy, NGOs and Civil Society
0
Will ‘organized’ communal violence derail Burma’s transition?
The deadly sectarian clashes between Buddhist Rakhines and Muslim Rohingyas could derail Burma’s reform process, a prominent activist warned today.
The government today said it had evidence that the communal violence in western Burma over the past 10 days –which left …
October 31, 2012
in Asia, Authoritarianism, China, Democracy Assistance, Democratic transitions, Dictatorships, Dissidents, Governance, Human rights, National Endowment for Democracy, Rule of Law
0
How democracy ‘can make China a great power’ (and Ai Weiwei solvent?)
Dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei (right) said today that he was returning money donated by supporters after exhausting legal channels to contest a huge tax bill widely considered official punishment for his rights activism.
In stark contrast to Ai’s principled …
October 31, 2012
in Africa, Democracy Assistance, Failed states, Labor/labor unions, Media, National Endowment for Democracy, Press Freedom, Rule of Law, Somalia
0
UN calls for inquiry into killing of Somali journalists
The director-general of UNESCO today called for an investigation into this week’s killing of two leading Somali journalists.
“I condemn the murder of Mohammed Mohamud Tuuryare [left] and Ahmed Farah Ilyas,” said Irina Bokova. “The number of journalists killed …
October 31, 2012
in Asia, China, Democracy Assistance, Dictatorships, Human rights, National Endowment for Democracy, Tibet
0
Beijing ‘powerless’ to halt surge in Tibetan self-immolations
“As China’s Communist Party prepares for its leadership transition, a wave of self-immolations has spread and accelerated across Tibet, in the most sustained protests against Beijing’s rule there in five decades,” Simon Denyer writes in the Washington Post:
Most …
October 30, 2012
in Analysis, Arab Spring, Democratic transitions, Dictatorships, Dissidents, Opposition movements, Syria
0
Positive dependency? US launches ‘Riad Seif plan’ to unify Syrian opposition
“Syrian opposition leaders of all stripes will convene in Qatar next week to form a new leadership body to subsume the opposition Syrian National Council, which is widely viewed as ineffective, consumed by infighting, and little respected on the …
October 30, 2012
in Authoritarianism, Central & Eastern Europe, Civil Society, Dictatorships, Dissidents, Eurasia, Europe, Human rights, Labor/labor unions, NGOs and Civil Society, Russia, Totalitarianism
0
Democracy’s fragility and the authoritarian allure: The Crushing of Eastern Europe
At a time of democratic regression, even in supposedly consolidated democracies, an important new book on the ‘Sovietization’ of eastern Europe explains the allure of the ‘totalitarian temptation’ and describes the techniques with which authoritarian rule is imposed, not …
October 30, 2012
in Authoritarianism, Central & Eastern Europe, Corruption, Democracy Assistance, Democratic transitions, Elections, Europe, National Endowment for Democracy, NGOs and Civil Society, Opposition movements, Ukraine
0
Flawed poll ‘a step backward’ for Ukraine’s democracy, says Clinton
Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich today dismissed international criticism of Sunday’s parliamentary election which his Party of the Regions seems set to win, while opposition nationalists have threatened street protests against alleged vote-rigging.“The opposition says Yanukovich’s rule is marred …
October 30, 2012
in Authoritarianism, Democracy Assistance, Dictatorships, Dissidents, Eurasia, Human rights, National Endowment for Democracy, Opposition movements, Rule of Law, Russia, Totalitarianism
0
As Russians recall totalitarianism, Kremlin revives Soviet police practices
“Members of the Memorial human rights society, relatives of victims and others come here once a year to stand near the Solovetsky Stone, brought from the White Sea island where the Soviets organized their first prison camp in 1923, …