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Resurgent autocrats no alternative to liberal democracy?

By DemDigest on December 23, 2008

Unlike the twentieth century’s failed autocracies, contemporary authoritarianism represents an alternative form of capitalism and a sustainable rival to liberal democracy. Or does it? 
Democracy may be facing a backlash or, at least, have stalled; China has married a one-party dictatorship with capitalist modernization; rising energy prices have fuelled autocratic regimes from Central Asia and the [read full story]

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Democracy assistance – highly contested terrain (again)

By DemDigest on October 3, 2008

The challenge to democracy, reflected in resurgent authoritarianism and the backlash against democracy assistance, amounts to a ‘new paradigm’, and requires more energetic public diplomacy to defend and articulate democratic ideas. Democracy can no longer be divorced from the broader issue of development and notions of poverty must be redefined to include individual freedom as [read full story]

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Innovative communications technologies – mixed blessing for democrats

By DemDigest on October 2, 2008

The political impact of new communications technologies is not always or necessarily benign, according to a new report from Oxford Analytica:
 The spread of new technologies will empower opposition parties in the short term, but incumbents are likely to work out how to turn these resources to their own advantage. Access to greater levels of unregulated [read full story]

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Kremlin Re-Writes History as Russian Orthodoxy Resurgent

By DemDigest on October 1, 2008

The patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, Aleksy II, played a critical role in mobilizing Russians against the coup launched on August 19, 1991, by the  Soviet KGB and party hard-liners. The latter were stunned that one of their own – he had been a KGB agent for 33 years – would turn on them. [read full story]

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EU to ease sanctions against Belarus?

By DemDigest on October 1, 2008

The European Union is planning to dilute sanctions against Belarus – the continent’s last remaining dictatorship – despite last weekend’s rigged elections. Monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said the poll, in which none of the 70 opposition candidates were elected to the 110-seat parliament, failed to meet international democratic standards.
The [read full story]

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Democracy assistance: moving beyond the ‘comfort zone’

By DemDigest on August 25, 2008

Greater harmonization and alignment is needed to make democracy assistance more effective, a new report concludes. “Donor fragmentation and lack of alignment of programs to country priorities tend to undermine already weak institutions,” according to an analysis from the UK’s Overseas Development Institute.
Hybrid regimes represent the principal challenge to democracy assistance, but democratization and good governance [read full story]

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Burma: a ‘picture of the geopolitical future’?

By DemDigest on August 25, 2008

Burma’s democratic opposition has dismissed talks between the military junta and UN envoy at Gambari as “a waste of time”. Activists are particularly annoyed with Mr Gambari for negotiating with the generals over their “roadmap” to democracy, which projects elections in 2010.
“Lifting the bamboo curtain” on Burma, Robert Kaplan outlines the strategic rivalry between China [read full story]

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North Korea: comment is superfluous

By DemDigest on August 22, 2008

Sometimes a regime’s propaganda says more about its venal and paranoid state than a thousand words of analysis.

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Iranian regime targets civil society, labor activists

By DemDigest on August 22, 2008

The Abdorrahman Boroumand Foundation reports that civil society activist Ya’qub Mehrnahad was executed on August 4. A 28-year-old father of three from Baluchestan, Mehrnahad was associated with the journal Mardomsalary (Democracy) and was president of the legally-registered Youth Voice of Justice Association (YVJA), an NGO tackling issues of accountability, education and training, discrimination, and civic [read full story]

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Double standards/new authoritarians

By DemDigest on August 22, 2008

Two NED board members offer some thoughts for reflection over the weekend.
The late Jeane Kirkpatrick provided one of the most astute and influential assessments of double standards in foreign policy. It is clearly an issue that continues to plague any democratic government that strives to reconcile ideals and interests, ethical considerations with economic and security [read full story]

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