Asia
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By Michael Allen on March 23, 2009
Shin Dong-hyuk was born in North Korea’s gulag and spent his first 23 years in Political Prisoners’ Camp No 14. It was his misfortune to assume at birth his family’s collective guilt for aiding South Korea during the peninsula’s civil war over half a century ago.
“Shin is the only man known to have escaped from [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Human rights, National Endowment for Democracy | Tagged Asia, Human rights, National Endowment for Democracy, north korea |
By Michael Allen on March 19, 2009
Further to the ongoing debate about the way forward in Afghanistan, former finance minister Ashraf Ghani argues that even the most comprehensive and aggressive counter-insurgency strategy will fail unless the issue of corruption is addressed:
To begin the process of cleaning up government, a new commission of civil society organizations should look into the sale and [read full story]
Posted in Asia, corruption | Tagged Afghanistan, Asia, corruption |
By Michael Allen on March 18, 2009
Pakistan narrowly avoided turning a political stand-off into a full-blown constitutional crisis this week (see the ever-useful POMED roundup), not least due to the critical role played by civil society, especially the independent lawyers’ movement.
But the settlement of the crisis does not address the underlying political volatility, economic impoverishment, and deepening social alienation that [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Democracy assistance, Islam/politics, NGOs/Civil society, promoting democracy | Tagged Asia, Democracy assistance, Islam/politics, NGOs/Civil society, pakistan, promoting democracy |
By Michael Allen on March 17, 2009
Indonesia’s elections commission has certified 10 local and two foreign survey groups – the European Union and the US-based National Democratic Institute – to undertake quick counts (aka Parallel Vote Tabulations) for the forthcoming legislative and presidential elections. The commission also certified 24 local and seven foreign observer organizations.
“Many Indonesians believe that their experience with [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Democracy assistance, Elections, Islam/politics, National Endowment for Democracy, authoritarianism, democracy promotion, promoting democracy | Tagged Asia, authoritarianism, Democracy assistance, democracy promotion, Elections, Islam/politics, National Endowment for Democracy, promoting democracy |
By Michael Allen on March 17, 2009
The Obama administration has sought to lower expectations for Afghanistan, suggesting that stability is the principal priority. Clearly, a failing state cannot sustain a genuine democracy, but others are reluctant to give up the country’s experiment with democracy, suggesting that “the custom of holding elections, even if some early rounds may be somewhat flawed, eventually [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Elections, Failed states, corruption, democracy promotion, foreign policy, promoting democracy | Tagged Asia, corruption, democracy promotion, Elections, Failed states, foreign policy, promoting democracy |
By Michael Allen on March 4, 2009
The world’s largest democracy goes to the polls next month when India’s 714 million voters cast their ballots in a five-phase parliamentary election stretching from April 16 to May 13. Observers suggest that the results will highlight the rise of regional politicians at the expense of national parties, such as the Congress and Bharatiya Janata.
South [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Backlash, Elections, Islam/politics, National Endowment for Democracy | Tagged Asia, Backlash, democracy, Islam, National Endowment for Democracy |
By Michael Allen on February 17, 2009
Twenty years after shedding authoritarian rule, Taiwan remains one of Asia’s most robust democracies. But questions of judicial impartiality, the dilution of constitutional checks and balances, and lack of transparency provide cause for concern, write Christopher Walker, director of studies, and Sarah Cook, Asia researcher, at Freedom House:
Taiwan has established itself as a democracy whose [read full story]
Posted in Asia, corruption | Tagged Asia, corruption, democracy, Taiwan |
By Michael Allen on February 12, 2009
Singapore’s People’s Action party has ruled for half a century due to an “implicit social bargain that it would deliver prosperity in return for restrictions on political freedoms.” It has been held up as a model of relatively benign authoritarian rule:
Singapore’s dominant one-party system has set an example for countries such as China, Russia and [read full story]
Posted in Asia, authoritarianism, economic crisis | Tagged Asia, authoritarianism, economic crisis, prosperity, singapore |
By Michael Allen on February 9, 2009
Stabilizing Afghanistan and Pakistan requires engaging regional powers and extending the Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs), relatively effective in the former, to the latter, argues the New America Foundation’s Parag Khanna, author of The Second World: How Emerging Powers are Redefining Global Competition in the Twenty-First Century. He advocates Arab, Turkish and especially Chinese participation in [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Backlash, Eurasia, authoritarianism, democracy promotion, promoting democracy | Tagged af-pak, Asia, authoritarianism, Backlash, democracy promotion, Eurasia, promoting democracy |
By Michael Allen on January 30, 2009
You can now watch on-line the launch of Strategic Persistence, the new report on promoting human rights and democracy in China. The panel includes Louisa Coan Greve, East Asia program director for East Asia at the National Endowment for Democracy, who suggests that cooperation with internal change agents may be part of a pluralistic approach [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Democracy assistance, National Endowment for Democracy, promoting democracy | Tagged Asia, china, Democracy assistance, National Endowment for Democracy, promoting democracy |
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