1989: A reminder of democracy’s fragility and resilience
Three decades ago this fall, a political earthquake rocked the barrier that had divided Europe and the city of Berlin for nearly five decades. The so-called Autumn of Nations saw… Read more »
Category: Democratic institutions
Sects, lies and populists: ‘democratic self-destruction’?
Look back a year, and remember how disquieting European politics seemed, as populist strategist Steve Bannon seemed to be on the verge of establishing The Movement, a cross-border alliance of… Read more »
Can Tunisia survive foreign efforts to derail its democracy?
Tunisia’s second presidential elections since the Arab Spring symbolize another step in the country’s promising democratic transition, The New Arab reports. The first round took place on September 15, and… Read more »
Cuba’s rebranded dictatorship ‘heading firmly in a more authoritarian direction’
The European Union and Cuba yesterday held their second formal Human Rights Dialogue, under the EU-Cuba Agreement on Political Dialogue and Cooperation. The dialogue is supposed to enhance bilateral engagement… Read more »
Iraqi protests signal emergence of ‘new civil society’
Dozens of demonstrators were killed across Iraq on Thursday and Friday as violent protests against government corruption swelled into a mass spontaneous uprising sweeping much of the country, the worst… Read more »
Democratic renewal: An ideological dimension to great power competition
American power is being challenged by rivals, such as China, that are keen to replace Washington as the one to write the rules of global conduct, argues Mira Rapp-Hooper, Stephen… Read more »
‘Democratic agnosticism’: Who is equivocating over promoting liberal values?
With protests raging in Hong Kong as well as in autocratic countries like Algeria and Egypt, and anti-democratic strongmen multiplying across the globe, the European Union is facing greater pressure… Read more »
‘Coups and Revolutions’: non-state actors, dysfunctional states impede Arab democracy
The slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi “has become the symbol of our collective moral conscience, the voice for the voiceless in the Middle East,” his fiancée Hatice Cengiz wrote in… Read more »
Putin in ‘political desert’: What’s the next step for Russia’s opposition?
Vladimir Putin has now been in power in Russia as president and prime minister for twenty years. The local elections held in September provide an opportunity to evaluate the results… Read more »
Ukraine’s ‘Invisible Battalion’
On paper, she was officially enlisted as a seamstress due to restrictions on women’s military employment, the National Democratic Institute notes. In reality, Andriana Susak served as an assault trooper… Read more »