Category: Civil Society

Aylwin, who led Chile’s post-Pinochet transition, dies at 97

     

  Patricio Aylwin, who as president of Chile in 1990 led the country’s transition to democracy from the dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, died on Tuesday at his home here. He was… Read more »

Egypt’s hollowed-out civil society

     

Authoritarian regimes are, in general, averse to a strong civil society. Egypt is no exception, notes Gamal Eid (left), an Egyptian lawyer and the director of the Arabic Network for… Read more »

Recognizing and countering authoritarian resurgence

     

A new book is warning of an authoritarian surge around the world led by China, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela, who are using sophisticated methods to silence dissent and… Read more »

Russia must abandon ‘false democracy’ – Putin ally

     

  Russia must “stop playing false democracy” in order to combat a “hybrid war” waged against it by the U.S., the chief of the country’s powerful Investigative Committee said. Russian… Read more »

Isolation and propaganda: roots and instruments of Russia’s soft power

     

Russia’s fairly successful propaganda in the West shows that political pluralism and open societies have some significant vulnerabilities compared to authoritarian states, with regard to speed of decision-making and action,… Read more »

Cuba minister calls Obama trip ‘an attack’ as Communists defend ideology

     

U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to Communist-led Cuba was an “attack” on its history and culture aimed at misleading a new business class, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said on Monday,… Read more »

Corruption crisis highlights fragility or robustness of Brazil’s democracy?

     

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff’s government vowed on Monday to fight impeachment after the lower house of Congress delivered a humiliating defeat that paved the way for her likely removal from… Read more »

Russia should learn from China’s internet censorship, says official

     

  The head of Russia’s Central Investigative Committee has urged the country’s officials to step up control of the internet, using China’s experience as a model to counter pressure from… Read more »