New social contracts needed for Arab renewal
Since the 2011 uprisings, the relationship between Arab leaders and citizens has been shifting, say Carnegie analysts Intissar Fakir and Sarah Yerkes. While the initial euphoria and hope of… Read more »
Category: Democratic Transitions
Democratic learning: how does Armenia’s transition compare to Color Revolutions?
Armenian citizens are showing widespread optimism about the country’s future and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government, according to new national poll from the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Center for Insights in… Read more »
Building Democracy after Popular Nonviolent Uprisings
Nonviolent movements make democratic transitions more likely and lead to stronger democracies, according to a new analysis by Jonathan Pinckney of the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (downloadable here). Drawing from… Read more »
Can Ethiopia’s new leader change it from the inside out?
The number of people detained over the deadly violence which broke out near Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, on Saturday has risen to 200, BBC News reports (HT: FDD). After taking… Read more »
‘The New Arab Order’: potential for democratic inclusion foreclosed?
In 2011, millions of citizens across the Arab world took to the streets, prompting popular uprisings from Tunis to Cairo which promised to topple autocracies and usher in democratic reforms, notes Marc Lynch,… Read more »
Why is Venezuela collapsing but Maduro still standing?
Venezuela has pledged its oil reserves as backing for a digital currency dubbed the “petro,” which leftist President Nicolas Maduro launched in February. This month he vowed it would be the… Read more »
Asia’s democracies: ‘still a force to be reckoned with’?
Recent months have seen questions about the long-term prospects for democracy in Asia come into focus once again, the Atlantic Council’s Asia Security Initiative observes. While Southeast Asia has seen… Read more »
Tunisia: How to Keep Democracy on Track
Tunisia’s seven-year-long transition to democracy has been excruciatingly difficult, marked by several terrorist attacks, ongoing economic crisis, political stalemate, and tenuous compromises between Islamists and secularists. At several points since the overthrow of… Read more »
To integrate Islamist parties, invest in civil society
If Egypt’s liberal activists had tolerated Islamist leader Mohamed Morsi’s illiberal but weak rule until he could be voted out, democracy might have had a chance, David D. Kirkpatrick suggests… Read more »
Can Ethiopia be a ‘goad’ for democratic change in East Africa?
Ethiopia can be a goad to change, if its economic growth rate and its continuing democratic movement are both maintained, says Freedom House analyst Jon Temin. The April 2018 election… Read more »