How Ethiopia silences independent voices

     

After a tense year marked by widely-criticized elections in which Ethiopia’s ruling party won 100 percent of parliamentary seats, 2015 concluded with yet more repression in the East African nation,… Read more »

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‘Politics of fear’ threatens rights, prompts civil society ‘choke-out’

     

  The politics of fear led to a global roll-back of human rights and a great civil society choke-out during 2015, according to the 659-page World Report 2016 from Human… Read more »

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Democracy takes global ‘battering’

     

Global democracy has endured a battering over the past decade, and those who hoped for a brighter century may be wondering when to expect relief, note Mark Lagon, the president… Read more »

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Time for democracy aid to ‘look homeward’?

     

Giving advice to people in another country about how to organize their political life is always a sensitive endeavor, notes Thomas Carothers, vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment… Read more »

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Democrats empowering Venezuela’s poor – for real

     

Now that Hugo Chávez’s old adversaries have taken over Venezuela’s Parliament, they are adopting one of his populist tactics and doing it better. They want to give away the deeds… Read more »

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China’s rise not making world more authoritarian – for now

     

Democratic uprisings are worrisome for Chinese leaders as they could spill over and inspire similar anti-government protests at home, notes Julia Bader, Assistant Professor of International Relations at the University… Read more »

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Why social media made but couldn’t save the Arab Spring

     

Five years ago this week, massive protests toppled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, marking the height of the Arab Spring. Empowered by access to social media sites like Twitter, YouTube and Facebook,… Read more »

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Fearing social instability, China waging ‘lawfare’ on NGOs

     

China’s Communist authorities are intensifying a crackdown on dissent, civil society and growing labor unrest, reflecting the ruling party’s concern that economic restructuring and dislocation will “threaten social stability.” “If… Read more »

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