Democracy Digest

‘Slow-motion coup’ highlights need to engage Libya

Demdigest — Fri, 17 May 2013 21:05:54 +0000

Libya’s worst political crisis since the 2011 revolution “is precisely the time for greater engagement….not only with Libya’s beleaguered government but also with its increasingly assertive civil society,” says a prominent analyst.

After armed militias recently laid siege to government …

‘The Islamist Nasser’? Qatar bankrolls Syrian revolt

Demdigest — Fri, 17 May 2013 20:48:32 +0000

“The gas-rich state of Qatar has spent as much as $3bn over the past two years supporting the rebellion in Syria, far exceeding any other government, but is now being nudged aside by Saudi Arabia as the prime source …

Call for dialog to save Tunisia’s transition from extremist threat

Demdigest — Fri, 17 May 2013 17:30:16 +0000

Tunisia’s acting president and labor unions have called for dialog and consensus on contentious issues hindering the democratic transition, as the country braces itself for anticipated violent unrest ata planned Salafist gathering this weekend.

“Everyone must make the necessary concessions” …

Kremlin spy plot thickens

Demdigest — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:30:22 +0000

The Kremlin’s efforts to undermine the democratic opposition and cultivate anti-American sentiment are the real factors behind the arrest of alleged CIA spy Ryan Fogle, analysts suggest.

“Public humiliations of hapless foreign spies were a staple of the Soviet …

Sectarianism leading to Syria’s cantonization?

Demdigest — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:33:05 +0000

“We’re going to keep working for a Syria that is free from Assad’s tyranny, that is intact and inclusive of all ethnic and religious groups, and that’s a source of stability, not extremism,” said US President Barack Obama …

As Iran prepares for poll, US Syria action ‘could sway regime on nukes’?

Demdigest — Thu, 16 May 2013 21:30:28 +0000

The result of Iran’s upcoming presidential election” is related not just to normal domestic feuds, division of spoils, and concerns about the level of discontent in society, but also to the regime’s international policies,” says a leading analyst.

“No …

US and Turkey agree – no role for Assad in Syria’s transition

Demdigest — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:54:22 +0000

US President Barack Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (right) today discussed how to bolster the Syrian opposition and initiate a political transition.

“We’re going to keep increasing the pressure on the Assad regime, and working with …

Woodrow Wilson’s Policy Legacy – ‘evangelizers of democracy’?

Demdigest — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:04:37 +0000

Brent Scowcroft, a former National Security Adviser to Presidents Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush, has been dismissive of Wilsonian “evangelizers of democracy,” so it will be interesting to hear his keynote remarks at a forthcoming symposium on Woodrow Wilson’s …

Iran elections ‘another chapter in regime’s gradual self-destruction’?

Demdigest — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:31:20 +0000

Iranian hard-liners are pressing for two prominent candidates to be barred from contesting next month’s presidential election “in a further sign of intense political jockeying over the final ballot list,” AP reports:

The appeal by nearly 100 parliament …

Defending Freedoms Project: EU and US must promote rights consistently (including China)

Demdigest — Thu, 16 May 2013 18:16:38 +0000

“Together, the EU and the US account for around half of global GDP and almost two-thirds of global military spending,” say two leading rights advocates. “A coordinated, transatlantic approach to human rights would mean the world’s rising authoritarian powers could …