Blogging the democratic revolution
Over at IEDs I have a post reporting the Jalal Talabani has finally been chosen Iraq’s new interim president after weeks of negotitations. With all that has been going on around the world, it’s a good idea to stop and remember how all of this revolution got started. There may still be some who don’t…
Michael Totten and Jim Hake are on the ground in Lebanon, raising money for the Cedar Revolutionaries. I got this email from Jim just a while ago: I’m in Beirut, Lebanon to kick off a project to support the pro-democracy demonstrators at the "tent city" in Martyrs’ Square. Their goals are independence (i.e., Syria out…
The Christian Science Monitor has an editorial instructing us in what we already know: Zimbabwe is not Ukraine: Viktor Yushchenko, who suffered near-fatal dioxin poisoning in his campaign to unseat Ukraine’s corrupt and authoritarian president, had the support of masses of protesters. But those were healthy, well-fed masses. In Zimbabwe, half the country is on…
So far, the visit of Viktor Yushchenko to this country has been about as exciting and informative as last night’s so-called opening night. The wave of optimism that recently has spread throughout the enslaved world and now seems stalled over Zimbabwe got its start in the earthquake of the Orange Revolution. The meeting of democracy’s…
Kyrgyz President Akayev has reportedly fled to Russia after protesters stormed the presidential compound: One key opposition figure, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, was at the scene, and state TV appeared to be in opposition hands ???????? underscoring the impression that the hitherto fragmented opposition was consolidating control. Another leading opposition figure was said to have been freed…
It looks as if Dennis Hastert has done the right thing: Yushchenko to address Senate and House in joint meeting Washington, DC ???????? Word has come in that the President of Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko, has been invited to address a combined meeting of the Senate and House during his visit to the U.S. in early…
The new Ukrainian government continues to contend with the fall out from the dealings of the last Kuchma regime. I mentioned yesterday that Yushchenko has shown a tendency to fall into a kind of minor-league imitation of his predecessor when reporting on his government’s actions. David Crouch notices the same thing: The suicide two weeks…
The protests in Kyrgyzstan seem to be having some effect: OSH, Kyrgyzstan – President Askar Akayev ordered the Central Election Commission and Supreme Court on Monday to investigate alleged violations in the recent parliamentary vote that have triggered weeks of nationwide protests led by the opposition, the president’s office said. Akayev ordered the commission and…
I meant to get this up this morning. My latest on Ukraine is up at Bloggledygook. The country’s Prosecutor General Pyskun has granted Mykola Melnychenko (Tape Man!) immunity in absentia. Also, Tape Man is under the protection of Boris Berezovsky, who has an interesting history of his own. Also, an interesting idea for a South…
The LA Times has a good article on the many strange deaths that have shadowed the Orange Revolution. How Yushchenko handles the pressure in this time after the Revolution will tell us much about his ability to govern and the future of Ukraine. My take is here.
The so-called "tapegate" revolving around the murder of Georgiy Gongadze is but one of many recording-related scandals in Ukraine. One such long and torturous story (which also features Mykola Melnichenko and his recordings) involves a prominent banker whom former President Leonid Kuchma is said to have conspired to intimidate, jail and destroy. This story has…
Although Robert will be doing a lengthy Lebanon post later, I thought that the latest maneuver by Emile Lahoud and the Syrian regime warranted an early post. Lebanese President Emile Lahoud is said ready to re-designate outgoing Premier Karami (who resigned in the face of protests) to form a new pro-Syrian government: The re-designation is…
Just about the time that democracies start sprouting all over, Red China would like to remind everybody not to feel too good: BEIJING — China unveiled a law Tuesday authorizing an attack if Taiwan moves toward formal independence, increasing pressure on the self-ruled island while warning other countries not to interfere. The United States said…
That’s what the banners are saying in the latest protest in Beirut: The crowd included a number of die-hard protesters who have been camping out at Martyrs’ Square, homemakers, men who took the day off from work, university students and others who traveled from other areas of the country. In a jab at Syrian President…
Up to 150,000 opposition activists rallied in Martyr’s Square chanting, “Syria Out!” and waving Lebanese flags: Monday’s demonstration marked three weeks since the Feb. 14 assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri that began a peaceful campaign against Syrian control. The massive crowd, chanting “Freedom, sovereignty, independence!” began marching through the streets to the site of…
With all that’s been going on in the Middle East lately, it’s easy to lose sight of what’s happening elsewhere. At Bloggledygook I have an update on the situation in Ukraine, including the latest on the supposed suicide of Yuri Kravchenko and the implications of his demise.
Lebanses President Emie Lahoud set about today to form a new government while opposition leaders – Muslim, Druze and Christian – are expected to meet Tuesday to plan for what comes next: It wasn’t clear if they would seek to keep up the street pressure or – as some have urged – step back to…
At Bloggledygook I have a post on Walid Jumblatt, sometime raving conspiracy theorist, sometime pragmatic politician, sometime pan-Arab nationalist. This person will likely be a prominent figure in coming events in Lebanon. Jumblatt has acted at times as one of Syria’s most vocal critics but seemed to come back into the fold when the US…
The AP and Fox News are reporting that Lebanese Prime Minister Omar Karami has announced his government’s resignation in parliament. No link yet. This came before the debate on a no-confidence vote was to begin. Stay tuned. UPDATE: Boston Herald: Karami made the announcement during a parliamentary debate called to discuss Hariri’s Feb. 14 assassination…
That’s the Palestinian people. It remains to be seen if the leadership understands that their people have had enough and are demonstrating a new willingness to talk peace: If this is to be made into something that could resemble a positive step, the PA should offer to work beside the Israeli military instead of against…
Egypt’s president for life, or at least the last 24 years is now calling for multi-candidate elections. He is requesting a national referendum to open up the September presidential rubber stamp. My take over at Bloggledygook: This is a very shrewd move by Mubarak, who has been snubbed just this last week by Secretary of…
Haaretz is reporting that at least 20 people have been injured in a suicide bombing in Tel Aviv: The suicide bomber apparently blew himself up at around 11:15 PM on a Friday night at the “Stage” club on the corner of Herbert Samuel and Yonah Hanavi streets in the city. Police were closing roads Friday…
Michael Ledeen of NRO has a strong piece on the movement toward democracy and revolution throughout the globe. The tidal wave has even reached into the planet’s darkest corners, most recently shaking the foundations of the North Korean hermit kingdom. A new leader is announced at the same time the monsters in Pyongyang whisper “We’ve…
IEDs (full disclosure: I write for this site) has stories here, here and here.
Taking FDR’s first 100 days as a model, the Kyiv Post outlines five areas where Viktor Yushchenko’s attention should focused. I summarize the editorial here.