Ten years after the Arab Spring: Why democracy failed
A majority in nine countries across the Arab world feel they are living in significantly more unequal societies today than before the Arab spring, an era of uprisings, civil wars… Read more »
Search Results for: pandemic
The Economist’s Country of the Year ‘revived democracy in authoritarian region’
Democracy and respect for human rights regressed in 80 countries between the start of the pandemic and September, reckons Freedom House. The only place where they improved was Malawi, the… Read more »
Arab Spring 2.0? Five lessons from 2011
The conditions that spurred the Arab uprisings, including government corruption, failed economies and deteriorating social services, have only intensified in many countries, exacerbated by 2020’s Covid-19 pandemic, notes analyst Megan O’Toole…. Read more »
Global democracy 2020: Bad news, good news
The year 2020 brought us mostly bad news regarding the state of global democracy, though there were some preliminary signs that things might yet turn around, notes Francis Fukuyama, a… Read more »
Shoring up democracy: Linking values and strategy
If the democratic world is going to mount a successful defense against authoritarian states’ efforts to rewrite global norms in their own favor, NATO and EU nations must make up… Read more »
Freedom’s struggle in the Indo-Pacific: A new experiment
What is the best balance of political freedom and economic openness? We are about to witness a demonstration of whether an authoritarian state can take over a free society and… Read more »
Don’t underestimate legitimacy’s role in democratic resilience
Contentious elections in divided countries can cause lasting damage to the legitimacy of democratic institutions, even if some observers have underestimated the resilience of democracy and rule of law, says… Read more »
China launches ‘gray-zone’ warfare to subdue Taiwan: CCP ‘reaping the whirlwind’ from too-sharp power
Months after eliminating a popular challenge to its rule in Hong Kong, China is turning to an even higher-stakes target: self-governing Taiwan. The island has been bracing for conflict with… Read more »
Rule of law standoff with Poland and Hungary tests EU’s defining values
The Polish government’s efforts to prevent the European Union from enforcing “rule of law” conditionality on future funding is not just a reflection of its illiberal nature, says Sławomir Sierakowski… Read more »
Venezuela’s opposition needs ‘to rethink alternatives’ after election charade
This week, Venezuelans are being asked to go to the polls not once but twice, in two bizarrely conflicting electoral events. On Monday, December 7, the government of embattled president Nicolas Maduro… Read more »