Month

Archives: Democracy

With more Women than Clerics, will Iran’s new Parliament improve Women’s Rights?

Leila Alikarami | (Open Democracy) | - - The problem was the Guardian Council, a body which has veto authority over any legislature, which in this case rejected all 33 bills introduced…

Big Money in Politics Doesn’t Just Drive Inequality. It Drives War.

By Rebecca Green | ( Otherwords.org) | - - Military contractors have shelled out over $1 million to the 2016 presidential candidates — including over $200,000 to Hillary Clinton alone. The 2016…

The Young Turks’ Cenk Uygur ARRESTED At Democracy Spring Protest In Washington D.C.

Ben Mankiewicz, Ana Kasparian, and John Iadarola | (The Young Turks Video) | - - "The Democracy Spring rally was held today in Washington, D.C. to protest government corruption and money in…

Do you have to be Affluent to be Democratic?

By Pippa Norris | (The Conversation) | - - Africans recently went to the polls in Benin, Cape Verde, the Republic of Congo, Niger and Zanzibar. The outcome was decidedly mixed. In…

Why Are there no Iranian Suicide Bombers? Evolving Islamic Democracy Matters!

By Ali R. Abootalebi | (Informed Comment) | - - The emergence of political Islam in the mainstream politics in the Middle East and across other Muslim countries since the 1970s has…

Why are American Elections so much worse than Everybody Else’s?

by Pippa Norris | (The Conversation) | - - The world is currently transfixed by the spectacle of American elections. From New York, London and Paris to Beijing, Moscow, and Sydney there…

Nine Takeaways From Iran’s Elections

By Golnaz Esfandiari | ( RFE/RL) | - - Iran's moderates and reformists have had nearly a week to celebrate their return from a decade of political marginalization in elections that recast…

Machiavelli: To combat Muslim Extremism, see Prophet Muhammad as bringer of a Constitution

Miguel Vatter | (The Conversation) | - - Everyone wants to die for Allah. We all want to live the best life in the hereafter and we want to make it to…

“Tehran is liberated territory” as Pragmatists & Centrists win Iranian Capital & Expert Assembly

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The era of former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, also a former mayor of Tehran, is completely over. Ahmadinejad's so-called spiritual mentor, Mohammad-Taqi Misbah-Yazdi…

Turkey’s Elections no longer for Democracy but for Nationalist-Conservative Domination

By Umit Cizre | ( OpenDemocracy) | - - Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's readiness to circumvent elections, illustrates that promises to end the conflict were contingent on securing a mathematically permanent conservative-nationalist electoral…

Elections in Iran, a Test for the Regime

By Farhang Jahanpour | (Inter Press Service) | - - Farhang Jahanpour is a former professor and dean of the Faculty of Foreign Languages at the University of Isfahan. Prior to that…

A Teacher in Afghanistan: Is the Future Democracy or Muslim Extremism?

By Jeffrey E. Stern | (Informed Comment) | - - A few months ago, in downtown Kabul, a small man stood on top of a car with a megaphone in a city…

Iranian Pres. Rouhani slams Hard Liners: Ban on Liberal Candidates makes Parliamentary Vote Pointless

By Golnaz Esfandiari | ( RFE/RL) | - - Iran's president has criticized the mass disqualification of candidates in next month's parliamentary elections, suggesting the decision could make the vote pointless. The…

Five years on, Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution continues from the ground up

By Adnan Saif | (The Conversation) | - - Tunisians are marking five years since the culmination of their “Jasmine Revolution”. Since its longtime authoritarian leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was…

Rare victory for Freedom of speech in Turkey, as Pianist allowed to quote Omar Khayyam

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - In a rare victory for freedom of speech in Turkey, the country's Supreme Court of Appeals has completely overturned a lower court ruling…

Saudi’s Suffragists: Women vote for first time, are elected to City Councils

By Katherine Mackenzie | (Inter Press Service) | - - ABU DHABI (IPS) - The triumph of 19 women in what is being seen as a landmark and historical election in a…

In the Middle East’s New Century, can Western Imperialism stop Thwarting Democracy?

By Jeffrey D. Sachs | (Project Syndicate) | - - Jeffrey D. Sachs | (@JeffDSachs) - - NEW YORK – The United States, the European Union, and Western-led institutions such as the…

After Paris, Rights Groups warn against Police State Tactics

By Nadia Prupis, staff writer | (Commondreams.org) | - - 'Whilst closed oppressive societies breed hatred and barbarism, open reflective states built on rights, freedoms and the rule of law ultimately prevail.'…

After the AKP Victory in Turkey: Elective Dictatorship?

T. Deniz Erkmen | (Informed Comment) | - - The results of November 1st snap elections in Turkey were a surprise; not just for the left or liberal opposition who were hoping…

Will Turkey’s winning Justice & Development Party seek Imperial Presidency?

By ERDAĞ GÖKNAR | (ISLAMiCommentary) | - - Erdağ Göknar The Nov. 1 parliamentary elections in Turkey resulted in an outcome that few commentators or polls had predicted: Another outright parliamentary majority…