Friday, December 11, 2009- 2 p.m. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF); and the Royal Netherlands Embassy holds a discussion on “international religious freedom,” to commemorate International Human Rights Day.
Featuring Netherlands Ambassador to the United States Renee Jones-Bos; USCIRF Vice Chairman Michael Cromartie; Lynne Davidson, senior adviser to the assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights, and labor; Freedom House Deputy Executive Director Thomas Melia; and William Davis, director of the United Nations Information Center in Washington. Venue: SR-325 Russell Senate Office Building. Further details: Gilles Goedhart, 202-274-2640, gilles.goedhart@minbuza.nl
Friday, December 11, 2009- 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. US Military Assistance: Obstacle or Opportunity for Reform? Military aid, in the form of grants, training, and weapons sales, plays an important role in U.S. relationships with its non-democratic allies in the Arab world. With billions of dollars flowing to such governments, including in the form of cash transfers, concerns are raised that U.S. transfers support the activities of security forces engaged in repressive actions, including dispersing peaceful protests, intimidating journalists, bullying voters during elections, and torture. Such concerns, when they were raised in the 1970s, led to the enactment of Section 502B of the Foreign Assistance Act, which prohibits U.S. assistance to governments that engage in consistent gross human rights abuses. At the same time, security assistance offers the U.S. opportunities for influence, including through the International Military Education and Training (IMET) program.
Please join a luncheon discussion with presentations from: Steven Cook, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations and Emile Hokayem, Non-resident Fellow, Stimson Center. RSVP here.
December 14, 2009. Democratization as a Source of Tension between the United States and Egypt. A discussion with Heba Elkoudsy, Ottaway Visiting Arab Journalist, Woodrow Wilson Center. Elkoudsy will address the question of democratization in Egypt: what was right and wrong about the Bush administration’s approach to democratic reform in Egypt? How did Egypt react to American pressure? Why is Egyptian democracy an interest to the US? What is expected from the Obama administration? What are the tools to achieve more democratic reform in Egypt, especially with upcoming Egyptian parliamentary and presidential elections in 2010 and 2011? 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. 5th Floor Conference Room, Woodrow Wilson Center, Washington, DC. Please RSVP to mep@wilsoncenter.org or fax 202-691-4184
Tuesday, December 15, 2009- 12 noon. The Center for International Media Assistance at the National Endowment for Democracy- Hate Speech in Divided Societies: Should it be Regulated? Hate speech in fragile democracies and divided societies can have catastrophic consequences. In Kenya, an outbreak of violence after the December 2007 elections left at least 1,000 people dead in six months. Malicious propaganda was spread via SMS, blog posts, and local language radio. In Russia, laws designed to contain the use of hate language are being manipulated by the government, which has twisted them to target nongovernmental organizations and individuals critical of the regime. In Serbia and Bosnia, negative portrayals of minorities are increasing tensions and rivalries among groups. In Afghanistan, warlords own a considerable number of media outlets which they manipulate and use against their opponents. In all cases, media have been used as a tool to spark intimidation and violence. What are the effects of legal measures taken to regulate hate speech in these regions? Can legislation to prohibit hate speech also threaten the foundations of democracy by limiting freedom of expression? Are there alternative approaches to address the problem of hate speech? What broader lessons can the media development community learn from these case studies? RSVP to CIMA@ned.org.
Friday, January 16, 2010 – 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The Congressional-Executive Commission on China. Roundtable discussion on “The UN Human Rights Council’s Review of China’s Record: Process and Challenges”. With Ellen Bork, Foreign Policy Initiative; James V. Feinerman, Professor of Asian Legal Studies, Georgetown University Law Center; Co-Director, Asian Law and Policy Studies Program; Felice D. Gaer, Director, the Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights; Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom; Xiaorong Li, Senior Researcher, Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy, University of Maryland.
Next month, the UN Human Rights Council will conduct an important assessment of China’s human rights record, known as the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The UN review is occurring at the same time China continues its crackdown on supporters of Charter 08, a public statement calling for political reform and greater protection of human rights in China. The expert panel will provide a range of perspectives on the UPR process, China’s role in it, and human rights developments in China, including Charter 08. Venue: Dirksen Senate Office Building-Room 628, Capitol Hill, Washington, DC. Please RSVP to Charlotte.Oldham-Moore@mail.house.gov
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010- 7pm. Obama on the Middle East – From Rhetoric to Reality. Professor Sir Lawrence Freedman, King’s College, London; Amir Taheri, author; Dr. Emanuele Ottolenghi, Transatlantic Institute Frontline Club, 13 Norfolk Place, London W2. 020 7479 8950. Full details here.
Friday, February 12th, 2010- 7pm. From fatwa and book-burning to jihad and hate laws: twenty years of free-speech wars. Kenan Malik, writer and broadcaster; Tariq Modood, Bristol University Amol Rajan, The Independent Stephen Law, Centre for Inquiry; Jo Glenville, Index on Censorship. Bishopsgate Institute, Bishopsgate, London, EC2. 020 7932 9220. Full details here.
January 21, 2010. Democracy’s Past and Future. Panel discussion and reception celebrating the publication of the twentieth anniversary issue of the Journal of Democracy (January 2010). The panel will feature contributors to the issue, including Francis Fukuyama, Ivan Krastev, Larry Diamond, and Marc F. Plattner. 4:00 p.m. Reception to follow. The National Endowment for Democracy, 1025 F Street, N.W., Suite 800, Washington, D.C. Full invitation to follow in early January.
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