Turkey’s 30-year coup
According to Turkey’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the recent attempted coup was not a legitimate sign of civic unrest, notes Dexter Filkins. In fact, it did not even originate in… Read more »
Category: Authoritarianism
Vietnam moving to smother dissent
There are growing signs that Vietnam’s government is moving to smother dissent, as the one-party regime in recent days has labeled a pro-democracy group a terrorist organization, imprisoned a blogger… Read more »
Central Europe slipping away from democracy?
Civil society activists are expressing concern that Slovakia, which currently holds the Presidency of the European Union, is considering a draft amendment which calls for the mandatory registration of foreign… Read more »
Illiberalism and authoritarianism can be successfully challenged
Illiberalism and authoritarianism in central and eastern Europe can be successfully challenged, according to Tom Junes, a member of the Human and Social Studies Foundation and a visiting fellow at… Read more »
Imprisoned Uighur scholar given top human rights award
A prominent Uighur scholar jailed in China after speaking out against repression in his native Xinjiang was named on Tuesday as the winner of a prestigious international human rights award… Read more »
Are Eastern Europe’s new illiberal democracies sustainable?
Hungary’s largest daily newspaper was unexpectedly shut down on Saturday (8 October), fueling concerns over a government crackdown on critical media. Nepszabadsag’s print and online editions were abruptly shut on… Read more »
Power shifts in Putin’s Kremlin
In recent months, there have been significant shifts in the Kremlin’s usually static leadership structure. Many of Vladimir Putin’s long-time allies have been removed from power and replaced with younger… Read more »
Regime ramps up repression as Russia ponders return to Cuba
The Russian military is considering the possibility of regaining its Soviet-era bases on Cuba and in Vietnam, the Defense Ministry said Friday, a statement that comes amid growing U.S.-Russia tensions… Read more »
Does populism’s rise mean liberalism’s end?
Liberal democracy may be facing dark times, as a conference at the National Endowment (left and below) this week suggested. But this is not the first time the Liberal Story… Read more »
How social media undermines democratic transitions
Egypt’s 2011 uprising has become synonymous with the successful use of social media to overthrow an entrenched authoritarian regime, note analysts Sean Aday, Deen Freelon and Marc Lynch. Popular and… Read more »