March 2007 Archives
Latest article on the U.S.-Brazil alliance
Filed under: Americas
A.M. Mora y Leon has written a fantastic article about the ethanol alliance between the United States and Brazil, where she describes it as going far beyond ethanol. It's a must-read, so follow the link.
(And just in case you're wondering, articles are exclusive Publius feature stories that are much longer and much more analytical and descriptive than the everyday commentary you see in this space. You can see the latest ones on the right hand side, see all of them by clicking on the articles tab above, or even subscribe to the RSS feed under the syndication bar. Enjoy!)
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redditJust when you thought the United Nations Human Rights Council couldn't get worse...
Filed under: United Nations
... well, it does!
Continuing our ongoing battle against the Human Rights Council's stupidity, it's time to unveil just how bad it had gotten over there. I don't want to take all the credit though. All of this information I'm about to show you is freely available on the council's website.
As was revealed in the last post linked above, the council has been holding its fourth session since its inception, going from March 12 through the 30th. In that time it has exempted Iran and Uzbekistan, two of the world's worst human rights abusers, from examinations into their actions. And did you know that development is a fundamental human right? It's news to me... Oh yeah, and let Sudan know of its "deep concern" over the blocking of its examination team from entering the country.
Today was different though! It made sure that things got much, much more stupid. Two absolutely incredible resolutions were passed today that are specifically worth mentioning: a resolution on religious defamation and another on "unilateral coercive measures" with regards to human rights. But why are these things stupid? Read on...
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditPutin "President" for Life? Maybe it wouldn't be so bad . . .
Filed under: Europe ~ Russia
You may remember Sergei Mironov (pictured above), Russia's equivalent to the U.S. Senate Majority Leader. When last we heard from him, he was watching approvingly whilst the security forces practiced pumping round after round into a target made out of the face of poisoned dissident Alexander Litvinenko.
Now, the wires are burning with the news that Mironov has proposed legislation to lengthen the presidential term. The AP quoted Mironov as saying: "Four years is a short period of time for a large country like Russia. It is necessary to prolong the presidential term in office to five or maybe seven years." Presumably, if the constitution is changed to permit seven-year terms, Putin will be allowed to seek at least two of them -- and who says the two term limit would necessarily be retained once Pandora's Box is opened?
The AP quoted Nikolai Petrov of the Carnegie Endowment's Moscow office saying: "In this nation, where there is no real parliament and the Cabinet is weak, a lame duck president would mean anarchy. Putin is deliberately uncertain about his plans, and Mironov is taking part in this game which Putin needs." Apparently, support for such an idea runs wide and deep in Russia. The AP quoted Chris Weafer, chief strategist with Moscow-based Alfa Bank, stating: "If it were to become a serious issue you would have a major upspike in the stock market. The issue of the third term just won't go away -- it does seem as though there is an eternal debate in the Kremlin."
Many commentators seem to feel it would be a bad sign for democracy in Russia if Putin were to retain the official reigns of power after 2008 when his term in office must end under the current constitution. But they could be wrong. If Putin stays in office, that likely means he is so unsure of the anti-democratic changes he has wrought that he feels he must stay personally in place to preserve them. If he's willing to walk away from the formal corridors of power even though he doesn't have to, that may well mean he's so sure the forces of democratic action have been silenced in Russia that there is nothing to worry about.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditAfrican genocide marathon
Filed under: Africa
In preparation for my trip to Africa this summer, I've been immersing myself in all types of media including books and video. So I've been watching and in some cases re-watching movies like Hotel Rwanda, Lord of War, Blood Diamond, etc. The Travel Channel also has a lot of interesting documentaries that they play that talk about everything from culture to geography.
So here's my question and I hope a lot of you out there give me your input in the comments! What books, movies, documentaries, etc. would you recommend regarding Africa?
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditFidel: Philosopher Extreme
Filed under: Americas ~ Cuba
Did you know that Fidel Castro, as much as being a thug and a tyrant, is also a writer and philosopher? He had suggested it at his online dating profile on MillionaireMatch.com, but I didn't believe it until now. In an article published in Granma, "Castro" ponders the implications of the America use of converted ethanol from corn and sugar as fuel. After concentrating so hard that the universe (as well as those tender intestines of his) almost exploded, he came to the conclusion that should have only been obvious had we underlings had the brain capacity that he does: "Condemned to premature death by hunger and thirst more than 3bn people of the world!"Cuban President Fidel Castro has strongly criticised the use of biofuels by the US, in his first article since undergoing surgery last year.Yet the Darth Vader outfit keeping him alive now must be more of an echo chamber than an amplifier, because his intense meditations are entirely false. Fausta seems to know the deal, though, and I wonder if Granma would be willing to take a counter-editorial?He said George W Bush's support for the use of food crops in fuel production would cause 3bn deaths from hunger.
During that meeting on Monday, Mr Castro writes, "the sinister idea of converting food into combustibles was definitively established as the economic line of foreign policy of the United States".
[...]
In it, he says he has been "meditating quite a bit since President Bush's meeting with North American automobile makers".
As more and more corn grain is diverted to make ethanol, there have been public concerns about food shortages. However, ethanol made from cellulosic materials instead of corn grain, renders the food vs. fuel debate moot, according to research by a Michigan State University ethanol expert.Personally, I don't even eat corn all that often, so I guess in Castro's theoretical situation I'm safe. But what if, in fact, he's somehow correct about this and real science is wrong? What if three billion people are going to die from hunger? What will the poor and oppressed people of Cuba do, already living on the brink of existence due to the imperialist swine? The Northern invaders have a cunning plan indeed. From an article via Babalu blog:
Washington's sanctions choke off most trade with Cuba, but a law passed by Congress in 2000 authorized cash-only purchases of U.S. food and agricultural products and was cheered by major U.S. farm firms like Archer Daniels Midland Co. interested in the untapped Cuban market.Is there really anything to say after this? The only reason that the Cuban people aren't completely starving is because the United States is allowing the communist government to import food. The hilarity with which we can now reread his "article" is enormous. If anything, though, Fidel Castro is no philosopher. He is a fool.Cuba refused to import one grain of rice for more than a year because of a dispute over financing, but finally agreed to take advantage of the law after Hurricane Michelle in 2001 cut into food stocks.
Since then, Cuba has paid more than $1.5 billion for American food and agricultural products, said John Kavulich, senior policy adviser at the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council of New York.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditThat infamous censored media
Filed under: Belarus ~ Europe
Suehp Rom has a cool post at his blog. The media in Iran is censored and satellite dishes are officially banned. But a picture reveals it all.
While not covering the entire cityscape, I took a similar picture during my time in Belarus. And while news censorship was pretty bad, the worst was the general programming. One can only take so many bad soap operas... no wonder there were so many dishes.
It looks like a lot of people make do.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditA new twist in Thailand
Filed under: Asia ~ Thailand
In the 21st century, when all governments to one degree or another are facing challenges to their legitimacy, former Prime Minister Thaksin's politics had been so divisive -- especially in Bangkok -- that the military felt that it could legitimately take power to end the standoff. Tanks and soldiers began roaming the streets, Thaksin fled the country, and the military installed its own prime minister to run the country until and eventual return to democracy.
However, the military has a legitimacy of its own that it must keep. The promises it made, and even those it didn't, are constantly evaluated for performance. Military regimes in general tend to have relatively short lifespans, but those without a coherent message or policy direction go down faster than others. With the Muslim insurgency in the south growing much worse, economic policy off course, civil and political freedoms restricted, and the constant talk of reinstituting emergency laws, its legitimacy is on the wane. Opposition is beginning to mount once again.
Gen. Sondhi has been thinking a lot about the latter lately. Yet he faced rebellion when he brought it up from the very prime minister that he installed to run the government. In fact, not only did the prime minister disagree with the idea, but he took it upon himself to announce on national radio that the emergency laws would not go into effect and elections would be held later this year.BANGKOK: Thailand's prime minister, Surayud Chulanont, rejected the advice of the general who put him in power, declining on Thursday to declare a state of emergency in Bangkok to clamp down on anti-government protesters and instead promising to hold elections before the end of the year.The military has one shot to rule, but as opposition has mounted, a decision to quell protest would be tantamount to crushing its own legitimacy. Interestingly, this announcement should have the same effect without restricting civil liberties. Now that people know when the elections are to be held, there really is no need to organize demonstrations. It was the kind of solution a military government probably didn't even think of."As of now, we will not declare a state of emergency," Surayud told reporters after meeting with General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, who led the September coup.
"I gave my opinion that if the situation does not constitute an emergency that jeopardizes the stability of the country, we cannot use that law," Surayud said.
On Wednesday, Sonthi declared that emergency measures were necessary in Bangkok to deal with protesters who have announced numerous rallies for the coming days.
After comments late Wednesday suggesting that he might side with the general, Surayud took the opposite tack: He said he still had the power to declare a state of emergency, which would suspend civil laws, but that the current situation did not merit the move.
Then he set a timetable for the return to democracy.
A referendum on a Constitution currently being drafted would take place no later than September, he said, and elections would be held on Dec. 16 or Dec. 22.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditRussia Tortures Released GITMO Prisoners
Filed under: Europe ~ Russia
Human Rights Watch has released a report finding that, as its press release states: "Former Guantanamo detainees who were sent home to Russia in 2004 experienced torture and other abuse despite Moscow's pledge to the US government that they would be treated humanely." According to HRW: "The seven Russians were all detained soon after the US invasion of Afghanistan and eventually spent about two years in Guantanamo. Although they complained of mistreatment by the Americans, all of the detainees repeatedly asked authorities at Guantanamo not to be returned to Russia because they expected to be treated worse there."
There are two obvious lessons to be draw from this: First, it may be that too much pressure was put on the U.S. adminstration to process these cases by left-wing forces, resulting in hasty decisions that left them worse off than they would have been in custody. Second, as Carroll Bogert, associate director of Human Rights Watch and author of the report, states: "Governments with records of torture don't suddenly change their behavior because the US government claims to have extracted some kind of assurance from them."
UPDATE: Radio Free Europe reports the findings of a Russian study on the use of torture in Russia. Here's the lead: "According to a new study published on March 28 by the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Committee Against Torture, a Russian human rights organization, every 25th person in Russia is tortured, beaten, or harassed by law enforcement officials each year."
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditHiding the face of [Russian] fascism
Filed under: Europe ~ Russia
Before the Winter Olympics of 1936, Hitler did a bang-up job on Berlin. He had to hide all of the work he had carefully been constructing from the world for a few weeks so that none would be the wiser about his plans to exterminate the Jews and conquer Europe. Anti-Jewish propaganda that had once covered the city was completely covered up, pro-Aryan and racist remarks in the media were halted, and undesirables were swept up and kept in camps. In other words, unless an individual knew better, the anyone visiting Berlin would have had no idea by simply looking around that Germany was a fascist power on the path to world war.
Sean Guillory reports that the pro-presidential, nationalist, perhaps even fascist youth group Nashi ("ours") has been blocked on the internet. Not for users in Russia itself, for the rest of the world.
Andy Young of Siberian Light replies that, "There can't seriously be anyone in the Nashi organisation who thinks that doing this will actually reduce the negative coverage they receive outside of Russia, can there?" I think the point is to do exactly that. While people may be able to criticize the fact that they can no longer see what's going on, the fact that they cannot see it prevents them from monitoring the development of the group's ideology. This step most assuredly reveals that Russia's youth politics and its politics in general are going the way of a once-dead ideology based on race elevation and power.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditThe colossal failure of the UN Human Rights Council
Filed under: United Nations
Foreign Policy's Passport blog has a post up about how the UN Human Rights Council has become a complete joke, a shadow of its supposed ideals. It writes about latest developments this week in Geneva:In Geneva this week, any pretense of utility or fairness that clung to the United Nations Human Rights Council finally evaporated. By a decisive margin, the Council voted to end its examination of Iran and Uzbekistan despite worsening human rights records in both countries. Japan, South Korea, and Brazil were surprising votes in favor of the free passes; they had been supported more predictably by Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, and Azerbaijan.Ironic given that Iran and Uzbekistan are perhaps some of the worst human rights violators in the world. Could Amnesty International possibly have been wrong when it declared "a new beginning for human rights" back in May 2006? No, it's a new beginning alright. It's an era of greater protection for human rights violators and back-patting for the insane leftists who supported its creation! Everyone wins! (Except the victims, but who are they, really?) In nearly a year, here is a brief list of some of the Human Rights Council's greatest accomplishemnts:
- Successfully condemned one country only, Israel.
- Repeat the above seven more times.
- Voted on June 30, 2006, to review Israeli human rights abuses at every council session.
- While investigating the Israeli-Hezbollah war, it announced that, "the Commission is not entitled, even if it had wished, to construe [its charter] as equally authorizing the investigation of the actions by Hezbollah in Israel." No bias here.
- Cuba is mounting a campaign to eliminate the council's ability to even investigate human rights.
And that's just some of them, but you can see the single-mindedness and uselessness of it all. Even the Human Rights Watch people are having to admit that their early optimism was clearly misplaced as best. Human rights isn't an issue that can be politicized and decided upon in the context of regional and despotic politics. But even when the council's democratic members don't stand up for them, all hope is lost.
Human rights are black-and-white. Only when a system based on objectivity and professionalism is put into place can a human rights council have any purpose other than making things worse.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditZimbabwe's opposition leader arrested
Filed under: Africa ~ Zimbabwe
A thin red line exists between what we morally can and cannot do. Such a line exists for all people, except for Robert Mugabe. His line is the horizon -- no matter how much he pushes the boundaries, it moves further and further away. He has systematically turned Zimbabwe into hell on earth, but even most tyrants will allow their opposition to exist in name while restricting their activities. Not Mugabe. He thinks that he's God himself. So I guess it should be no surprise that he has taken his rule one step further by arresting opposition leader Morgan Tsvangarai.HARARE, Zimbabwe — Police stormed the main opposition party headquarters Wednesday and arrested its leader shortly before President Robert Mugabe left for an emergency meeting of southern African leaders about the crisis in Zimbabwe.Zimpundit says that this shows that Mugabe is willing to do anything to crush the opposition and remain in power. Certainly so. In the moment, one would find it impossible to believe that genocide in Rwanda and Sudan could actually happen until it is well underway, regardless of the plentiful signs pointing in that direction well ahead of time.Morgan Tsvangirai and other Mugabe opponents were taken into custody hours before the opposition leader planned to talk to reporters about a wave of political violence that left him briefly hospitalized.
Police sealed off approaches to the Movement for Democratic Change headquarters and fired tear gas to drive away onlookers before taking Tsvangirai and the others away in a bus, said Eliphas Mukonoweshuro, an aide to Tsvangirai.
"We don't know their whereabouts. We don't know if they have been charged," he said.
Meanwhile, the world stands by idly interpreting events and, rather than acting on that analysis, hopes that the horizon will eventually end. A cartoon posted by Sokwanele sums it up:
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditPart II: What's Up with Iran and Russia?
Filed under: Middle East ~ Russia
Last week, we asked what readers thought of the current brouhaha over the Bushehr nuclear station Russia is building for Iran -- Russia has claimed Iran isn't making its payments and is threatening a pullout. Assuming the problems are not coming from Iran's side, we asked, what's the explanation? Over 120 votes were cast and the overwhelming majority felt that there weren't actually any problems, but rather only a publicity stunt designed to deflect Western criticism of Russia. The next most likely possibility, readers thought, was that Russia was fooling with Iran's head in order to maximize its influence. Few readers thought Russia had come to its senses on Iran or had never actually intended to make Iran a nuclear state and just duped Iran, and indeed recent news reports do seem to indicate that Iran and Russia are quickly making it up -- so the readership may well have pegged it correctly.
But just for the sake of argument, let's flip the coin: What if the problems are coming from Iran's side? Given Iran's lust for nukes, they'd have to be pretty serious, and therefore quite interesting. Three possibilities are evident: (1) Iran duped Russia, and never intended to allow anti-Muslim, Chechnya-bashing Russia to achieve deep influence over its energy sector, but just used Russia to get the ball rolling; (2) Despite oil revenues, Iran really is strapped for cash due to mismanagement; (3) Iran is in the throes of internal political chaos.
What's your view? We'd like to know! We welcome alternative theories in the comments section. del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditAnnals of Russian Hypocrisy
Filed under:
We recently reported on the Russian government's outrageous suppression of political dissent, as evidenced most recently in Nizhny Novgorod. As we've mentioned, the other side of the story is the use of Kremlin authority to bolster and support pro-government activity, such as the recent rally by the "Nashi" ("us Slavic Russians") youth cult in Moscow where the activists were actually guarded by the police rather than victimized by them. Global Voices translates the comments of a well-known Russian blogger regarding the Nashi spectacle:
Gallery owner Marat Guelman (LJ user galerist) got hold of Nashi booklet - and here's what he thinks of it:As we reported long ago, along with all the other neo-Soviet developments in Russia these days, Russia is clearly attempting to revive the Komsomol youth cult as a way of gaining control over the future generations.I felt somewhat jealous of [right-wing extremist leader] Eduard Limonov. To have such determined propagandists [as Nashi are] costs a lot.In general, Nashi can be considered the founders of a new genre. The booklet resembles a brief user guide. For an extremely simple device (something like a hammer). Just a few words, but repeated on every page:
Fascists: Hitler and LimonovTraitors: Andrei Vlasov [a Soviet Army General who cooperated with Nazi Germany during WWII] and Mikhail Kasyanov [Russia's PM from 2000 to 2004, who is currently Garry Kasparov's close ally]
Enemies: America and the liberals
Victims: Saddam Hussein and the Russian people
Friends: Putin and Putin tomorrow
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditBack in the USSR?
Filed under: Europe ~ Russia
The most recent addition to our "Articles" section (which you can access either by clicking the "Articles" tab under the title or, for the most recent items, by scanning the middle column of the blog) is a review of the Kremlin's recent efforts to crack down violently on peaceful public protests by opposition political parties led by former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov. The photo above shows the Kremlin's stormtroopers raiding a group of protesters in Nizhny Novgorod over the weekend, from Robert Amsterdam.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditEgypt's democracy for the bureaucracy
Filed under: Egypt ~ Middle East
Today's "referendum" in Egypt on proposed constitutional changes passed by with a dismal, low turnout as most people there already know that the outcome is predetermined. Yet while most people are stuck in traffic or sitting down for a meal, there are some strident believers in Egypt's democracy who cannot allow for such leisures. Meet the Egyptians bureaucrat who, known for an average of five minutes of productivity a day, is working overtime to make sure that Mubarak's changes go through. In fact, they seemed to be the only ones, and not even under the clearest of consciousness. Read on:The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights said that in the southern Asyut governorate it had monitored local municipality cars broadcasting loudhailer warnings that those not voting would be fined 100 Egyptian pounds (about 17,5 US dollars).Vote or die? Mubarak seems to have taken P. Diddy's advice too strictly. In Egypt, you vote or you lose your job! The only only opinion that counts is that of the bureaucrat or high-ranking party member, and this so-called election shows that their opinion is universal. Will we see a 99.99% approval as we did in Anwar al-Sadat's days, or will Mubarak shave a few percentage points off to placate the United States?Observers also said public buses were being used across Cairo to take civil servants and workers to vote in the referendum, which has been met by indifference among large sections of the population.
'My name and the names of my colleagues were enlisted against our will,' said one public school teacher. Another civil servant said she was told her salary would be halved for a month if she did not vote for the amendments.
[...]
At one polling station in a Giza school, several dozen teachers and civil servants reported difficulties with voting procedures.
Does it matter?
Marc Lynch has the smartest and snarkiest quotables: "Most Arab outlets are reporting that Condoleeza Rice softened her criticisms of the referendum after meeting with Mubarak. How humiliating, how predictable. Abou el-Gheit is spooning out the terrorism angle - we must do this to protect ourselves, just as you did with your Patriot Act - and Rice (and at least some of the media) seems to be eating it up whatever the flavor. Yes, how could Egypt possibly fight its great terror menace while judges are supervising elections?" Zing!
Also, check out Sandmonkey, who writes about his own experience just yesterday with the riot police putting down a demonstration that he participated in.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditA lesson in legitimizing the opposition
Filed under: Kuwait ~ Middle East
Kuwait Unplugged writes about how the government pulled the plug on a show that he was due to appear on in which he'd talk about blogs. Read the whole post, but here's the most interesting point:They just don't learn, do they? The more effort you spend suppressing voices, the more those voices will find ways to be heard. The government should stop wasting its time and resources on suppressing opinions and focus on running the country. I even said that on the show.... wait a minute! Could that be the reason it got cancelled?! I hope I'm wrong!We are living in an era of openness, where even in closed societies technology has made it possible to see things that were once hidden. People are learning that they have the right and ability to decide for themselves, so by blocking the show, they are legitimizing whatever Zaydoun was saying by peaking the public interest. It's possible that when they viewed the program they could have decided that he's full of hot air, but now his point is only proven. Whether the government likes it or not, the people can find out if they want to.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditMubarak has Rice by the...
Filed under: Egypt ~ Middle East
Just days before Egypt is set to falsify "elections" on its latest constitutional reforms, which by all stretches of the imagination can be nothing more than a great leap backward, Condoleezza Rice hopped on a plane over there. The purpose? To smack President Mubarak around a bit and let him know that the United States has had enough of his despotic shenanigans, that he will not be receiving $1.3 billion in military aid next year, and that the country's people will have America's full support for their democratic aspirations. Take a look at her full comments:"We have had a discussion. I have made my concerns known as well as my hopes for continued reform here in Egypt," Rice told a news conference after meeting with Mubarak. "The process of reform is one that is difficult. It's going to have its ups and downs. We always discuss these matters in a way that is respectful, mutually respectful. But I have made my concerns known, and we have had a good discussion," she said.Oh wait, I guess I figured that wrong. The change of tone is mighty different compared to what she was saying in 2005. Just take a look:
Ladies and Gentlemen: In our world today, a growing number of men and women are securing their liberty.And now: we are not doing anything! Why? Because we can't. In 2005, the elections in Iraq and the Cedar Revolution in Lebanon made the march of democracy seem unstoppable. Now, with persisting problems in Lebanon due to Syria's domination and sectarian strife in Iraq, Arab leaders are relating these problems to democracy itself and asking their people if they want it. The answer, of course, is no.And as these people gain the power to choose, they create democratic governments to protect their natural rights.
We should all look to a future when every government respects the will of its citizens — because the ideal of democracy is universal.
For 60 years, the United States pursued stability at the expense of democracy in the Middle East — and we achieved neither.
Now, we are taking a different course. We are supporting the democratic aspirations of all people.
So regimes like that of Egypt are strengthening themselves on the knowledge that they have convinced their public that American ideas of democracy cannot apply to them. Even though they aren't happy at all with the way things are now, many think it would only get worse with democracy. This really limits how much pressure we can put on Mubarak, consequently leading to such lame statements like Condi was making this weekend.
Chalk it up to another defeat on the PR front.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditLukashenko lays down his law
Filed under: Belarus ~ Europe
On March 25, Belorussian pro-democracy parties staged a rally commemorating the independence of the first Belorussian state, as well as the week-long rallies that took place in October Square following elections that were deemed neither free nor fair. How the government reacted would determine how serious it was about overtures it had been making about better relations with the European Union. With several MEPs on hand, there'd be plenty of witnesses to whatever happened. EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso even said that he was prepared for a "full partnership" with Belarus if it consented to democratic reforms.
But for all intents and purposes, it does not appear as if that will be the case.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditAl Qaeda's full moon fantasies put on hold
Filed under: Middle East
Not long ago, Al Qaeda announced it has installed the Islamic State of Iraq, and Abu-Umar Al-Baghdadi is the Emir of the country, and also the Caliph of all countries between Maghreb to India. If that is not wishful thinking, then I don't know what is!
The good news is that some of the Iraqi tribes (Al Anbar and those who have members of both sects, such as Al-Dulaym, Shamr, Tamim, Al-Jabbou, Al-Bu Ajayl, Al-Obeid, Al-Jumaylat, Zubeid, etc) tired of Al Qaeda bullying, bombing and killing their men, women and children rally together in the attempt of weaken the terrorist organization. Hope more tribes will follow the example! (Al Sharq Al Awsat, March 21 and Al Hayat, March 22, 2007)
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditHappy Weekend!
Filed under: Site Updates
We may have a new design... but that doesn't mean we've suddenly started working on the weekend! Monday will be full of great stuff, however. New articles, new commentary, and maybe even some protest babes.
Make sure to subscribe to our RSS feed, which provides updates on all of our material -- even a daily summary of the democracy news. It's an easy and quick way to see all of our content especially if you're on a slow internet connection. Check that out on the right to add it to your favorite reader!
Consider this an open thread.
And again, happy weekend!
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditTime to Focus Again on the Iranian People
Filed under: Middle East
With the attention of the free world all on the nuclear programme of the Islamic Republic of Iran, we are no longer hearing anyone saying a word in support of the Iranian people. It looks as if they even didn't exist. I understand that the nuclear program is a pressing issue, but I also believe that it's high time to focus again on the Iranians who are suffering under one of the most repressive and Dark Ages regimes on the face of the earth.
I analyzed twenty-eight years of such a rogue regime and what it has meant for the Iranian people and the international community as well.
You can read my analysis at Real Clear Politics here.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditThe state of the system
Filed under: Africa
Former vice-president of Zimbabwe, Joshua Nkomo, writes a very interesting article in the Zimbabwe Independent about what he sees as what needs to be done in order to ensure the freedom of its people. It was very interesting, and at least I got the point, but I couldn't help but be sidetracked from one paragraph of the column that makes an assertion about political systems that I feel compelled to further explore. Here's what he wrote:A one-party state, sincerely operated, may indeed be a way of encouraging an open and constructive debate. A multi-party state, badly operated, may be just another way of keeping an elite in power. The point is it is not the formal system that really matters, but the spirit in which a single or multi-party state is managed or operated. What matters is that the leadership should tolerate and encourage diverse opinions to be heard -- opinions of different social groups, differ-ent economic interests, different regions. Since geographical regions within Afri-can nations tend to be inhabited by people of different languages and cultural backgrounds, partly as a result of colonial boundaries, regional dynamics to national politics are vitally important: recognising and accommodating regional differences is the best way to prevent them turning into counter-productive tribal rivalries. Diversity must be appreciated, celebrated and tapped for collective national good.Being largely a proponent of structural factors, I wonder: Is this even possible in most cases? Won't most leaders, in single party states, simply opt for absolute power regardless of their previous noble ambitions? Are diverse opinions and rights something that can be guaranteed by a leader, or something that has to be built into the system in a way that they cannot be breached on a whim? Mugabe himself is a prime example of this. Therefore, I think that power cannot be trusted, and must be restrained by the system itself.
Let me know what you think, as I would like to discuss these ideas and turn them into a larger article to post soon.
del.icio.us | digg | technorati | stumble upon | furl | redditIs Russia Trying to Annex Abkhazia or Just Destabilize Georgia?
Filed under: Asia
Do you dare to imagine Russia's reaction if a wolfpack of NATO helicopters plunged into Chechnya by night, violating Russian air space to do so, in order to attack Russia-friendly forces seeking to subjugate the Chechen rebels? Can you imagine how Russia would wail to high heaven about "provocation" and the "territorial integrity" of Russia?
Other countries, it seems, are not entitled to any such attitudes. Especially not Georgia.
Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not denying that, as the Jamestown Foundation reports: "an air attack on Georgia's upper Kodori Valley during the night of March 11-12 was carried out by Russian helicopters." JF describes the carnage:
Two or three helicopters violated Georgia's internationally recognized air space over the upper Kodori Valley that night, flying in from Russia's Karachaevo-Cherkessia region. The helicopters, apparently of the Mi-24 type, fired at least 20 guided projectiles, damaging the local government headquarters, a school, and some other civilian administration buildings in several villages. The damaged building in the village of Chkhalta is shared by the government office and a school. This attack is at least the fifth Russian violation of Georgian air space in the upper Kodori Valley in the last six months. It is, however, the first incident when weapons were fired. Georgian radar recorded all of those incidents, but Georgian police stationed in the area have long been instructed not to fire.
The Kodori Valley, see map above, borders Abkhazia, a region of Georgia agitating for independence in exactly the same way Chechnya has been doing against Russia for years now. Yet while Russia insists no foreign nation can dare to "interfere" in Chechnya, Russia apparently has no problem making military incursions against pro-Georgian forces in Abkhazia. The JF reports:
According to the ministry's chief spokesman, Mikhail Kamynin, the incident is a "logical result" of Georgia's July 2006 decision to re-establish control over this part of Abkhazia and install authorities loyal to Tbilisi there. Even more explicitly, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Grigory Karasin describes the air incident as part of an "action-reaction" process, triggered by Tbilisi's "destabilizing" decision last year, with consequences now and perhaps down the road. He warns, "This incident sends a strong message to those who are attempting to destabilize" the situation." By this logic, the re-establishment of Georgia's legitimate authority in the anarchic no-man's land that used to be upper Kodori is destabilizing, notwithstanding the actual stabilization and rapid economic development of the area in the secure environment that exists since July 2006. Further, by Moscow's official logic, the air attack on Kodori should serve as proof that Georgia is destabilizing the area. It reflects Moscow's traditional belief that Georgia's stability and prosperity are incompatible with Russian interests.
The JF notes: "An investigative report is due for release in the next few days under a United Nations imprint. The political issue at hand is whether the UN would, as usual, seek to obscure Russia's responsibility." It's more than obvious that if the UN is prepared to accept the conclusion that "Georgia's stability and prosperity are incompatible with Russian interests" and therefore sweep this incident under the carpet, it may have outlived its usefulness. Whether Russia is seeking to actually annex the territory of Abkhazia by attacking the chokepoint border area time after time, or just to destabilize the anti-Russian government in Tbilisi (against which it has already tried to foment a coup d'etat), the world must send a clear message to Russia that its actions are intolerable.