Category: Dictatorships

South Korea’s president impeached. What you need to know.

     

On Friday, South Korea’s Constitutional Court unanimously upheld the legislature’s impeachment of President Park Geun-hye, notes Celeste Arrington, an assistant professor of political science at George Washington University. After months… Read more »

‘Normalised’ Cuba kills dissident in civil society crackdown

     

At least 482 arbitrary arrests” of peaceful dissidents took place in Cuba in the month of February, says the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation (CCDHRN). The figure was… Read more »

China trying to provide ideological alternative to Western liberalism?

     

As if any reminder were needed, delegates to China’s ceremonial parliament were repeatedly told in no uncertain terms this week what job No. 1 is: “Follow the leadership of the… Read more »

Kazakhstan’s ‘authoritarian lite’ regime hints at cosmetic change

     

Kazakhstan’s leader, Nursultan Nazarbayev, is the country’s only president since independence — elected five times with 97.5 percent of the vote. Nazarbayev has created a kind of “authoritarian lite” system… Read more »

Political warfare the logical projection of Russia’s new ideology

     

Proponents of an accommodation with the Kremlin fail to appreciate the nature of the regime in Russia, says The Economist’s Edward Lucas. “The idea of a holy homeland besieged by… Read more »

North Korea’s crimes against humanity demand justice

     

A rare piece of fiction from one of the world’s most repressive regimes reaches English speakers for the first time this week, Reuters reports: The Accusation is thought to be the… Read more »

Why Russia is ignoring first flirtation with liberalism

     

Russia’s February Revolution is one of history’s great “What if” moments, says the University of Queensland’s John Quiggin. If this revolution — which actually took place in early March 1917… Read more »

‘Revolutionary situation unfolding’ in Belarus

     

A tax on “social parasites” is stirring up public angst in Belarus, according to reports. A classic revolutionary situation may be unfolding in Europe’s last dictatorship, notes analyst Leon Aron:… Read more »

Cuba: appeasement never works

     

Rosa María Payá will be presenting an appeal for a judicial review of the conviction of Angel Carromero for the events that caused the death of her father, Oswaldo Payá, and… Read more »