Category: Civil Society

Religious politics signal ‘Rough Times for Democratic Change’

     

  Democracy and models of social market economy are facing an unprecedented challenge worldwide, while the influence of religion on political institutions and legal systems is on the rise, says… Read more »

Honoring Nemtsov, a call for action

     

Thousands of people marched in honor of slain opposition politician Boris Nemtsov on February 27, one year after he was shot dead near the Kremlin. Five suspects have been charged… Read more »

Egypt’s civil society: two misperceptions

     

During a congressional hearing on the Obama administration’s FY17 budget request, Secretary of State John Kerry spoke briefly regarding the state of human rights in Egypt, expressing his concern over the… Read more »

Five things China’s censors cut from Fukuyama’s book

     

At the American Interest, Francis Fukuyama provides a list of cuts made to the Chinese edition of his latest book, “Political Order and Political Decay: From the Industrial Revolution to… Read more »

Iran poll balances ‘external loosening’ with ‘internal stiffening’

     

Iranians headed to the polls Friday in elections made easy for conservatives after sweeping bans that left many pro-reform candidates off the ballots, adding further political pressures on Hassan Rouhani,… Read more »

Chinese labor unrest tests Communist Party authority

     

An upsurge in industrial militancy in China is presenting a challenge for a Communist Party that bases much of its legitimacy on its ability to manage the economy, Simon Denyer… Read more »

How to control corruption? The European experience

     

In recent years, the European Union has made an unprecedented effort to transform its periphery by exporting values such as rule of law, democracy and good governance. What should donors… Read more »

‘In search of lost time’: standing up to Putin

     

Russia and the West are sliding into “a new Cold War,” Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev warned the recent 2016 Munich Security Conference, going on to ask: “Are we living… Read more »

Authoritarian offensive highlighted at dissidents’ Geneva Summit

     

The financial crisis is one of a number of challenges which have sapped the confidence of established democracies to stand up for democratic values, the National Endowment for Democracy‘s Christopher Walker… Read more »

Morales defeat lifts hopes for Latin American democracy

     

The blocking of Evo Morales’ desire to run for a fourth consecutive presidential term in Bolivia didn’t only put a stop to his creeping authoritarianism. It is also an encouraging… Read more »