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Failed states
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By Michael Allen on April 14, 2009
April 15, 2009. The Center for International Media Assistance at the National Endowment for Democracy – luncheon presentation on Engaging Citizens in Peace: Media and Communication Development Strategies in Post-conflict and Fragile States.
Speakers: Deborah Jones, Search for Common Ground; Theo Dolan, U.S. Institute for Peace; Mark Koenig, U.S. Agency for International Development. Moderated by: [read full story]
Posted in Asia, Backlash, China, Democracy assistance, Events, Global, Human rights, Islam/politics, Middle East and North Africa, NGOs/Civil society, National Endowment for Democracy, Soft power, authoritarianism, democracy promotion, dissidents, foreign policy, media, promoting democracy | Tagged civil society, Communication Development Strategies, De-Radicalization, Democracy assistance, democracy promotion, Failed states, Human rights, independent media, media assistance, National Democratic Institute, National Endowment for Democracy, Post-conflict States, promoting democracy, religious freedom |
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 February 26, 2009
All states have neighbors, but only Russia has a ‘near abroad’. Paul Goble once excoriated analysts who used the term, with its implicit recognition of Moscow’s imperial claims. But he now finds it useful – so long as it’s reciprocal, he told a Washington meeting last evening on “Russia: Central Asia’s Near Abroad“.
The Russian Federation [read full story]
Posted in Eurasia, Failed states, Human rights, Labour/labor unions, Russia, economic crisis | Tagged Failed states, Human rights, Russia |
By Michael Allen on February 4, 2009
The director of Somalia’s independent HornAfrik radio station, Said Tahlil Ahmed, has been murdered in Mogadishu.
Reports suggest that journalists were attacked en route a press conference called by the al-Shabab Islamist militia. Al-Shabab opposes Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, a relatively moderate Islamist associated with the Union of Islamic Courts, who was recently elected as president.
Some [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Failed states, Islam/politics, National Endowment for Democracy, media | Tagged Africa, Failed states, hornafrik, Islam/politics, media, National Endowment for Democracy, somalia |
By Michael Allen on January 6, 2009
International media and human rights groups have condemned the murder of Somali journalist Hassan Mayow Hassan. “There is an urgent need to end violence against journalists in Somalia and all warring factions must refrain from targeting the media,” said Aidan White, General Secretary of the International Federation of Journalists.
According to the National Union of Somali [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Failed states, media | Tagged Africa, Failed states, media, somali |
By Michael Allen on January 6, 2009
“Engaging closed societies is the best way to foster democratic change,” argues Larry Diamond, co -director of the International Forum for Democratic Studies. Writing in Newsweek, he suggests that the incoming U.S. administration must fashion a “more subtle and sophisticated approach” to promoting democracy in the likes of Cuba, Burma, Iran and Syria.
“The United States [read full story]
Posted in Backlash, Democracy assistance, Elections, Failed states, Global, Human rights, Labour/labor unions, NGOs/Civil society, Women, authoritarianism, corruption, democracy promotion, dictatorships, foreign policy | Tagged authoritarianism, Backlash, corruption, Democracy assistance, democracy promotion, dictatorships, Elections, Failed states, foreign policy, Global, Human rights, Labour/labor unions, NGOs/Civil society, Women |
By Michael Allen on December 11, 2008
Democracy assistance practitioners frequently bemoan the ill-informed conflation of their work with militarized forms of regime change. They may at least be comforted by the latest unconventional thinking from the Pentagon.
“The United States is unlikely to repeat another Iraq or Afghanistan — that is, forced regime change followed by nation building under fire — anytime [read full story]
Posted in Failed states, Global | Tagged Failed states, Global |
By Michael Allen on December 4, 2008
We often read references to democracy and human rights activists operating in adverse or difficult circumstances. But, as a report from the Dr. Ismail Jumale Human Rights Organization indicates, few environments can be as challenging as that of Somalia (for copies of the report email dijhro@globalsom.com or dijhrocenter@yahoo.com).
Armed conflict between the Transitional Federal Government [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Failed states, Human rights, Regions | Tagged Africa, Failed states, Human rights, somalia, somalialand |
By Michael Allen on November 10, 2008
The need to “reassert our faith in the advance of democracy as the most effective weapon in our arsenal against terrorism and tyranny” is one of the five great global challenges facing the world, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown said today. He called for a “progressive multilateralism” to strengthen the global economy; tackle climate change; [read full story]
Posted in Failed states, Global, democracy promotion | Tagged democracy promotion, Failed states, Global |
By Michael Allen on June 27, 2008
Few regions of the world are as inhospitable for human rights and democracy activists as the East and Horn of Africa, a region comprising more than its share of failed states. Hassan Shire Sheikh concedes as much, but he insists that for every challenge there are grass roots activists “ready to pick up the pieces [read full story]
Posted in Africa, Failed states, Human rights, Regions | Tagged Africa, Failed states, Human rights |
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