Turkey ‘will never be the same’ after referendum
On April 16, Turkish voters will be casting votes in the most consequential referendum of modern Turkish history, notes Henri J. Barkey, the director of the Middle East Program at… Read more »
Category: Democratic institutions
Burma’s transition: ‘yet to give substance to strategy’
A senior Myanmar government official on Tuesday denied there was ethnic cleansing against Rohingya Muslims in the troubled northwestern state of Rakhine, where a military operation aimed at the minority… Read more »
Arab civil society crucial for democracy
Popular protests against corruption and curbs on freedom of expression are indications of the increasingly authoritarian rule of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, observers suggest. A Palestinian author is hiding in an… Read more »
Russia Beyond Putin: Is fundamental change possible?
Is fundamental change in Russia possible? Would it overhaul the system, or modify or improve it without transforming it? And if change were to occur, will it necessarily be change Western… Read more »
Egypt’s social activism – ‘resilient and evolving’
Democracy and human rights advocates expressed disappointment by the warm embrace offered to Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi in Washington this week, despite his crackdown on civil society, but many were… Read more »
Russian information warfare at its worst
Russian information warfare at its worst, visit the Baltic states, Christian Caryl writes for The Washington Post: Interference with elections? Check. Cyberattacks? Check. Prominent politicians with murky links to the Kremlin? Check. Fake news and… Read more »
New monitoring tool shows shrinking civic space
While many rights groups have raised concern over the global decline in democracy, we have not had a compete, global picture of the levels of respect for civic space –… Read more »
Defending civil society & human rights in the global crackdown
Facing a growing crackdown on dissent around the globe, human rights advocates are engaged in a creative and critical fight to defend fundamental rights. With “serious threats” to civil… Read more »
Ukraine cracks down on anticorruption crusaders
A recent legislative amendment requiring activists and journalists reporting on government corruption to file public declarations of their personal assets is vague and could be used to deter or punish… Read more »
Promote democracy to counter radicalization and extremism
The British government today called for a global partnership to counter online radicalization and extremism. “As long as violent extremist groups seek to undermine the very ideals and values that… Read more »