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democracy and development
By Michael Allen on March 15, 2010
The United States remains committed to promoting democracy in the Middle East, a senior State Department official insisted today, but the pace and content of reform will be determined by local actors and the specific conditions within Arab states.
“Economic and social development are prerequisites for sustainable democracy,” said Tamara Wittes, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State [read full story]
Posted in Democracy assistance, Elections, Featured, NGOs/Civil society, National Endowment for Democracy, authoritarianism, autocrats, democracy, democracy and development, democracy promotion, democracy support, democratic reform, democratization, foreign policy, promoting democracy | Tagged Arab exceptionalism, authoritarian regimes, democracy promotion, democratic reform, democratic values in the Arab world, Middle East Partnership Initiative, political liberalization, promoting Arab democracy, promoting democracy in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Tamara Wittes |
By Michael Allen on March 15, 2010
Tuesday, March 16 – 10:00 am to 11:30 a.m. Disappearing God Gap: Religion’s Role in the 2008 Presidential Elections and Beyond – The Brookings Institution, Saul/Zilkha Rooms, 1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC – In a new book by religion and politics experts Corwin Smidt and Kevin den Dulk, The Disappearing God Gap? (Oxford University [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Analysis, Asia, China, Democracy assistance, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Elections, Eurasia, Europe, Events, Fragile States, Global, Human rights, Iran, Iraq, Islam and democracy, Islam/politics, Latin America and the Carribean, Middle East and North Africa, NGOs/Civil society, National Endowment for Democracy, Pakistan, Regions, Religion and Democracy, Russia, Ukraine, Women, Zimbabwe, accountability, authoritarianism, autocrats, color revolutions, democracy, democracy and development, democracy promotion, democracy support, democratic reform, democratization, dictatorships, dissidents, economic crisis, emerging democracies, foreign policy, freedom of expression, governance, legislatures, media, promoting democracy, religious freedom, rule of law, sanctions, solidarity | Tagged Analyzing the Political Elite of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Democracy in Ukraine, Freedom House, Governance in the West Bank, Internet freedom, Islamism and Neo-secularism, Michael Posner, Obama Administration’s Russia Policy, Politics, post-Orange Revolution transition, radicalization, Russian Anti-Americanism, Security and Human Rights in the North Caucasus, Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, Transparency, Why There Is No ‘European Islam’, Zimbabwe |
By Michael Allen on March 8, 2010
When Suharto’s military dictatorship and the economy collapsed simultaneously in 1998, observers expected Indonesia to lapse into chaos and violence. The prevailing scenarios held that without an autocratic figure to hold it together, the country would Balkanize or fall prey to fundamentalist Islam.
Instead, while the threat of radical Islamist terrorism has not dissipated, the country [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Indonesia, Islam and democracy, Islam/politics, autocrats, corruption, democracy, democracy and development, democracy promotion, promoting democracy, rule of law |
By Michael Allen on March 8, 2010
The crisis in Haiti highlights the adverse consequences of empowering largely unaccountable and uncoordinated NGOs while marginalizing the state, Paul Collier suggests.
“If the state is not visibly providing services, its predominant interface with citizens is as a tax collector, regulator, and bribe taker,” writes Collier, author of The Bottom Billion. “This has already bred a [read full story]
Posted in NGOs/Civil society, accountability, democracy, democracy and development |
By Michael Allen on March 4, 2010
National Endowment for Democracy
Currently available opportunities include: Administrative Assistant – CIMA, Program Assistant – Asia, Program Assistant – Europe, Program Officer for Asia, Program Officer for Latin America and the Caribbean, Database/Web Developer, and Senior Director of Finance. Further details here.
International Republican Institute
Currently available DC-based opportunities include: Online Communications Specialist, Deputy Press Secretary, Program Assistant [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Asia, Backlash, Center for International Private Enterprise, China, Democracy assistance, Eastern Europe, Elections, Eurasia, Europe, Funding Sources, Global, International Republican Institute, Latin America and the Carribean, Middle East and North Africa, NGOs/Civil society, National Democratic Institute, National Endowment for Democracy, Religion and Democracy, Russia, Solidarity Center, Tools/technology, Transparency, Women, accountability, authoritarianism, democracy, democracy and development, democracy promotion, democracy support, democratic reform, democratization, dissidents, emerging democracies, foreign policy, freedom of expression, promoting democracy, religious freedom, rule of law |
By Michael Allen on March 3, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010 – 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM – The Iraqi Elections & the Changing Politico-Security Environment in Iraq – Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1779 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. – Featuring keynote speaker Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, this one day conference presents a number of panels and experts discussing key issues of security and [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Analysis, Asia, Backlash, Blogs, China, Democracy assistance, Egypt, Elections, Fragile States, Iran, Iraq, Islam and democracy, Islam/politics, Journal of Democracy, Middle East and North Africa, NGOs/Civil society, National Democratic Institute, National Endowment for Democracy, Publications, Religion and Democracy, Russia, Soft power, Tools/technology, Women, accountability, authoritarianism, autocrats, backsliding, color revolutions, corruption, democracy, democracy and development, democracy promotion, democracy support, democratic reform, democratization, dictatorships, dissidents, economic crisis, emerging democracies, foreign policy, governance, media, promoting democracy, protests, religious freedom, rule of law, smart power, solidarity, state-building | Tagged Broadcasting in UN Blue: The Unexamined Past and Uncertain Future of Peacekeeping Radio, Center for International Media Assistance, Dalia Ziada, democracy in Mexico, Democratization in Africa, freedom of the internet for democracy, Human rights, Human Rights in the North Caucasus, Iraqi Elections, Islam and Religious Freedom, Islamic Republic of Iran, Mark Lagon, Mexican Media Under Attack, Mobilizing for Women's Rights and Eliminating Violence against Women, National Endowment for Democracy, Restoring America’s Reputation, Second Geneva Summit for Human Rights, velayat-e-faqih, Women in a Changing China, Women's Learning Partnership, Yemen, Zalmay Khalilzad |
By Michael Allen on March 3, 2010
The apparently stable advantage of democracy over autocracy disguises worrying erosion in the quality of democracy, a new analysis suggests.
Democracy has not lost its normative appeal, but even established democracies have experienced “significant setbacks” in the freedoms of assembly, association and the press, as well as declines in political participation, civil liberties and social capital, [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Analysis, Asia, China, Cuba, Cuba, Elections, Europe, Featured, Georgia, Kenya, Latin America and the Carribean, Middle East and North Africa, NGOs/Civil society, Russia, Turkey, Vietnam, authoritarianism, autocrats, backsliding, corruption, democracy, democracy and development, democratization, economic crisis, emerging democracies, freedom of expression, governance, media, rule of law |
By Web on February 23, 2010
Wednesday, February 24 – Saturday, February 27 – “Voices from Afghanistan” Exhibit – Library of Congress, Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First St. SE – On February 24, a new exhibit at the Library of Congress will display some of the thousands of hand-painted scrolls and letters received by Radio Azadi, RFE/RL’s popular Afghan radio station. [read full story]
Posted in Afghanistan, Democracy assistance, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Elections, Failed states, Fragile States, Haiti, Human rights, Iraq, Islam and democracy, Islam/politics, Kenya, Labour/labor unions, Middle East and North Africa, NGOs/Civil society, National Endowment for Democracy, Regions, Transparency, Women, authoritarianism, corruption, democracy, democracy and development, democracy promotion, democracy support, democratic reform, democratization, dissidents, engagement, foreign policy, freedom of expression, governance, media, promoting democracy, protests, rule of law, solidarity | Tagged and Google, Broadcasting in UN Blue, Center for International Media Assistance, Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, china, counter-extremism, Democracy & Democracy Promotion, Democracy Promotion in the Muslim World, democratic governance, Geneva Summit for Human Rights, International Labour Organization, Iraqi Elections, Islam and Religious Freedom, Lech Walesa, National Endowment for Democracy, Post-Conflict Reconstruction, Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow, Rethinking Human Development, Role of the U.S. in Encouraging Pro-Democracy Movements, Tariq Ramadan, the Internet, Vaclav Havel, Violence against Women, Voices from Afghanistan, Women’s Rights in the Middle East and North Africa |
By Michael Allen on February 22, 2010
Are authoritarian states successfully promoting their interests and projecting their soft power while the world’s democracies experience a bout of timidity and isolationism? Or are the autocratic states inherently flawed, failing to provide any sustainable alternative to liberal democracy?
A new book by Azar Gat raises a fundamental issue, writes Gideon Rachman in The Financial Times.
“The [read full story]
Posted in Backlash, authoritarianism, autocrats, democracy, democracy and development, democratization, dictatorships |
By Michael Allen on February 18, 2010
The world’s democracy and human rights advocates need to develop genuinely global responses and new approaches to deal with the current authoritarian offensive against fundamental freedoms of association and expression, former Czech President Vaclav Havel told a Washington meeting last night.
There is a compelling moral imperative for solidarity with dissidents within totalitarian and authoritarian regimes, [read full story]
Posted in Backlash, Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Cuba, Democracy assistance, Human rights, NGOs/Civil society, National Endowment for Democracy, authoritarianism, autocrats, backsliding, communist regimes, democracy, democracy and development, democracy support, dissidents, freedom of expression, promoting democracy, solidarity, totalitarianism |
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