Category: National Endowment for Democracy

Hybrid threat: Illiberal non-state actors clamping down on civic activism

     

1989 marked the end not of history as such, but of a specific chapter in history. Western liberal democracy, which Francis Fukuyama predicted would enjoy eternal supremacy after 1989, now faces an increasingly… Read more »

‘Reasons for Hope’? Illiberal wave vs. democratic resilience

     

The illiberal wave in Poland and Hungary, in addition to the corruption in Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, and Slovakia can be easily used as excuses against further EU enlargement, notes Carnegie’s Judy Dempsey…. Read more »

Beijing’s assertiveness betrays its desperation: CCP ‘might collapse’?

     

China’s ruling Communist Party is holding a key meeting this week amid a drastically slowing economy, ongoing protests in Hong Kong and pushback abroad against Beijing’s global ambitions, AP reports;… Read more »

Explaining the global protest wave

     

Sixty-three people died over the weekend in a crackdown by security forces against ongoing anti-government protests [HT: CFR], according to the semi-official Iraq High Commission for Human Rights. Iraq is… Read more »

The other ‘God That Failed’? The triumph and tragedy of 1989

     

“Always prepared!” For decades, it was a catchphrase of the Pioneers, an outdoorsy youth group that was a hallmark of communist indoctrination efforts targeting schoolchildren throughout the U.S.S.R. and its… Read more »

Poverty & Freedom: Inequality feeding democracy’s susceptibilities to degeneration?

     

Enhancing global prosperity must begin with supporting locally-led initiatives that eliminate institutional barriers to freedom—and give citizens greater choice over their future, according to a new book. Governments and philanthropists… Read more »

Poland’s populist win calls into question liberal democrats’ received wisdom

     

  Last Sunday’s Polish parliamentary elections provide political lessons that go well beyond Poland’s borders. The elections disprove important received wisdom about far-right and populist politics, and the results should… Read more »

Democracy in a post-Western order: decline or renaissance?

     

The U.S.-led liberal order, built by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his successors, is being  dismantled, according to a leading strategist. The U.S. emerged from the horror of the 1940s as… Read more »

Demolishing Faith: China sharpens hacking to hound minorities, home and abroad

     

China’s hackers have since built up a new arsenal of techniques, such as elaborate hacks of iPhone and Android software, pushing them beyond email attacks and the other, more basic… Read more »

Post Wall, Post Square: 1989 – The Light that Failed?

     

Like 1776, 1789 and 1917, the year 1989 was one of those rare moments that mark a decisive turning point in human history. So, at least, it seemed at the… Read more »