Toward a negotiated transition in Syria?
Today, the Ides of March, marks the fifth anniversary of the rebellion in Syria against the Assad regime, notes Elliott Abrams, a Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Studies at the… Read more »
Category: Authoritarianism
Obama in Cuba: 90 Miles To Go and Promises to Keep
The Obama administration says it is making it easier for people to travel to Cuba, lifting limits on money travelers can spend there. The announcement, made Tuesday, came just… Read more »
Exploiting Disorder: al-Qaeda and the Islamic State
A purely military approach to countering violent jihadist extremism risks entrenching the resentment and victimization of Sunnis and deepening chaos, according to a new report from the International Crisis Group (ICG). The… Read more »
Poland’s ruling party aims ‘to delegitimize liberal democracy’
A pan-European rights body said on Monday it would review a newly amended Polish surveillance law, in a fresh challenge to the conservative government that reflects international concerns over… Read more »
Is global democracy in trouble?
Or does it just feel like it? PRI asks. “We’re not just talking about a recession of democracies, in terms of countries that are democracies. We’re talking about a recession… Read more »
US ‘deeply troubled’ by Russian moves to ban democracy group
Russian authorities have launched investigations against an activist of Russia’s Parnas opposition party, Natalya Pelevina, RFE/RL reports. Russia’s Investigative Committee said the opposition leader being checked for her role in… Read more »
Iran trying to shut down UN Human Rights investigation
Iran executed nearly 1,000 prisoners last year, the highest number in two decades, and hundreds of journalists, activists and opposition figures languish in custody, a United Nations investigator said on… Read more »
Turkey’s Erdogan must reform or resign
Under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey has steadily descended into authoritarianism and instability, according to Mort Abramowitz* and Eric Edelman, both former U.S. ambassadors to Turkey, and… Read more »
Ecuador and Bolivia show Venezuela no longer a model
Like Venezuela, the administrations in Ecuador and Bolivia have taken decisive steps to concentrate power in the executive branch, weaken independent institutions, persecute political opposition, and close media space. Keeping… Read more »
China’s NGO law remains a work in progress
It has been more than two years since the Chinese government proposed tighter controls on foreign nongovernmental organizations, prompting fears for the future of a wide range of groups active… Read more »