Jordan election: the same old song?
Jordan’s parliamentary elections on September 20 have produced a parliament that will contain opposition figures for the first time in a decade, analysts Michele Dunne and Marwan Muasher write for… Read more »
Author Archives: DemDigest
Succession planning flurry follows Eurasian autocrat’s death
The recent death of Uzbekistan’s seemingly perpetual president has drawn fresh attention to the uncertainties of one-man rule elsewhere in Central Asia and the Caspian Sea region, writes Freedom House… Read more »
Legacies of Totalitarianism – all too evident in CEE
Ironically, it was not the end of communism, but the disintegration of post-communism, that has ushered in a time of deeply unsettling global uncertainty, notes Stephen E. Hanson, director of… Read more »
Rule of law, anti-corruption tested in Central America’s Northern Triangle
There are indications that Honduras may finally have the momentum and firepower to deal with its corruption problems, say analysts Ana Suazo and Henry Sullivan Atkins. The Indignados movement provided… Read more »
Poland highlights the ‘specter haunting Europe’
Tens of thousands of protesters hit the streets of the Polish capital Warsaw Saturday (24 September) to rally against moves by the rightwing Law and Justice (PiS) government that they… Read more »
Addressing the democratization disconnect
While proposals to abandon democracy promotion are reckless, at this pivotal period in democracy’s evolution, Western democratic leaders can’t continue to operate business as usual, the University of Maryland’s Brian… Read more »
Putin preparing new phase of ‘guerrilla war’ against the West
As President Vladimir Putin further tightens his grip on power after dubious elections that gave his party an absolute majority, Russia is sliding into protracted stagnation. The Economics Ministry has adjusted downward… Read more »
Soviet Union’s collapse wasn’t inevitable, says Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin has reshuffled his inner-circle again, giving the parliament speaker’s job to his chief domestic strategist, a man who oversaw a vote that further strengthened the dominance… Read more »
Why Poland is not Hungary
Contemporary commentary on central and eastern Europe tends to come down with a heavy hand, say analysts Ireneusz Pawel Karolewski and In his recent snapshot, “Poland’s Constitutional Crisis,” Daniel Kelemen… Read more »
Why Zimbabweans turned against Mugabe
In a research report published this year for the Center for Strategic Intelligence Research, American University political scientist Adrienne LeBas analyzed the current political situation in Zimbabwe. As part of… Read more »