Vladimir Putin cemented his supremacy over Russia’s political system when his ruling United Russia party took three quarters of the seats in parliament in a weekend election, paving the way… Read more »
The European Union External Action Service, the EU’s diplomatic arm, has criticized the Egyptian government’s decision to freeze the assets of leading civil society activists. “The increased pressure on independent… Read more »
Jordan‘s parliament election on Tuesday is being touted as proof that the pro-Western monarchy is moving forward with democratic reforms despite regional turmoil and security threats, AP’s Karin Laub writes:… Read more »
Today, five years later, it’s easy to forget that Syria’s revolution started off amid the optimism of the Arab Spring. The first protests against Assad’s dictatorship were peaceful: Demonstrators were… Read more »
To mark the International Day of Democracy, the Africa Center for Strategic Studies published the above maps highlighting the strong relationship between governance and conflict: Central, Northern, and the… Read more »
Is the trend to restrict civil society, visible in Russia and neighboring countries, getting worse? In some of the countries of the former communist world, it has become more difficult… Read more »
Mass harassment online has proved so effective that it’s emerging as a weapon of repressive governments, notes analyst Andy Greenberg. In late 2014, Finnish journalist Jessikka Aro reported on Russia’s… Read more »
Presidential term limits have also been a common feature of African constitutions — but constitutional amendments have almost exclusively extended presidential term limits, notes Kamissa Camara, the senior program officer… Read more »
Until a few years ago, it was the consensus among academics and practitioners that democracy had finally solidified in Latin America and the Caribbean. Most political leaders and citizens alike… Read more »
Journalist Can Dündar and fellow defenders of freedom of thought and expression in Turkey, the Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzemilev, the Yazidi survivors and public advocates Nadia Murad Basee… Read more »