Blogging the democratic revolution
With parliamentary elections on a few weeks away, and the prospect of a colored revolution on the horizon, the Freedom bloc (comprised of three major parties) is uniting with another opposition party, the National Unity bloc, in order to support each others’ candidates and ensure that the government doesn’t rig the election. Executives of Azadlig (Freedom) bloc of three main opposition parties and the National Unity bloc have agreed to cooperate at the November parliament elections. Under the agreement they signed, the two organizations will join efforts at ensuring a democratic and fair election, eliminating irregularities, supporting each other????????s candidates…
As the release of the Mehlis report edges closer, Bashar is beginning the process of elimination. That is, of those who would implicate his goverment. Ghazi Kanaan, the Syrian interior minister, has been found dead in his office with a bullet in his mouth. President Assad’s Interior Minister General Ghazi Kanaan, who ruled Lebanon for years as Syria’s military intelligence chief, committed suicide Wednesday a few days ahead of the expected release of a U.N. report into the assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri. He was 63. Kanaan’s Aide-de-Camp Brigadier Walid Abaza told the Agence France Presse that Kanaan shot himself…
The Iraqis have worked out a very good deal amongst themselves. So good, in fact, that one key Sunni group is dropping its opposition to the constitution. The deal would allow the December parliament to make amendments to the constitution, in which Sunnis and liberal secularists will have a much higher representation and voice than the currently Kurdish and religious Shiite dominated parliament. It also works out some other key issues. BAGHDAD, Iraq – Iraqi leaders reached a breakthrough deal on last minute changes in the constitution Tuesday, and at least one Sunni Arab party said it would reverse its…
This week’s carnival of revolutions is up! It’s very interesting this week because all of the worldwide developments are related back to Armenia, another country looking for proper democracy. It gives a special insight into that country in the context of democracy at large.
I was sitting in a shisha bar with some friends the other night, and soon enough I was talking with my friend from Lebanon about the Mehlis report, the implications for Syria, and what will happen to President Lahoud. He is a Christian and a supporter of General Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement and went out on the streets during the Cedar Revolution, so the topic always incites him (which is fine with me, who else am I going to discuss Lebanese politics with?). It was fun because I hadn’t written much about goings on there of late, and in particular,…
I’ll be in New York City this weekend. If you feel so inclined, maybe shoot me off an email and we can meet up for coffee while I’m there.
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty has several long pieces regarding the war on terror following President Bush’s speech. Read them: – Four years later, no clear winners in the war on terror – Who is the enemy, and how is it changing? – Can West fight terror and still maintain civil liberties? – Global war on terror faces government with unique enemy
Thousands of people are being arrested, demolotions continue, inflation is skyrocketing, and there are even rumors of a military coup as even the army isn’t receiving food and pay crucial to their loyalty to Mugabe. This is Zimbabwe today. D.B. Light rounds it up.
Andy Young has a good post on Russia’s closed cities, in which over 2 million people are sealed off from the world.
It seems that some other countries are worried about American imperialist hegemony with regards to the internet. So, morally speaking, other countries should be able to have joint control over it to make sure that nothing bad happens. It sounds all so wonderful. Well, until you look at who wants it, and when you realize that they just might get it. The issue of who should control the net had proved an extremely divisive issue, and for 11 days the world’s governments traded blows. For the vast majority of people who use the internet, the only real concern is getting…
Obviously fearing defeat and a loss of power in the upcoming elections, the religious Shiite parties in collaboration with the Kurds made a really dumb move by reinterpreting the electoral law for the October referendum. It has raised a fury with the Sunnis, prompting the UN and U.S. to step up and ask the parties to undo the changes. BAGHDAD — The United Nations has criticized last-minute changes Iraq’s Shiite-led government made to its electoral laws before the Oct. 15 constitutional referendum, and was trying yesterday to persuade legislators to reverse the amendments. UN officials warned the Iraqis that the…
The democratic opposition to the government of Belarus has formally united, with the selection a single candidate to represent its broad interests in the 2006 presidential election. The choice is Alyaksandr Milinkevich, a civil society advocate who is relatively unknown and untarnished by regime propaganda. They also chose as their symbol a red tree on a white field, which takes from the original red and white Belarussion flag that was discontinued under Lukashenko. A 1-2 October congress of pro-democratic forces in Minsk selected Alyaksandr Milinkevich as its candidate to challenge President Alyaksandr Lukashenka in next year’s presidential election. More than…
Our dearest Stefania is hosting this week’s comprehensive carnival of revolution! Go check it out for a recap of all the latest developments in democracy.
Amid the heaviest fighting since the intifada, the Palestinian government of PM Qureia is coming under ÄfigurativeÅ fire for its inability to deal with parallel military authorities like Hamas. Policeman stormed the parliament building to protest the government’s inability to equip and train them properly to deal with the problem, while legislators themselves voted that Qureia should be replaced within two weeks if this doesn’t happen soon. About 40 Palestinian policemen broke into the Palestinian parliament building in Gaza City on Monday, firing in the air to protest what they said was the humiliation police are facing because of attacks…
I know… bad excuse for not blogging, but I suddenly came down with fever. It’s killing me, and not so softly. Blogging resumes tomorrow, with plenty on Palestine, Belarus, and political developments elsewhere. Stay tuned!
It’s the weekend, and you know what that means. No posting until Monday! I’ll be using the time to work on the Walk For Democracy here in Boston (and let me know if you want to join in), as well as getting other work done. Have a nice weekend!
While the most over-reported story (and the most debunked) story in the press this past August was the drafting of and the opposition to the Iraqi constitution, the most under-reported story in September is how ongoing negotiations have moderated large portions of the document’s opposition. In fact, as some of the contentious issues have been negotiated down, and the document has circulated amongst the general population, its approval and acceptance has become more likely. While we can’t perfectly predict what will happen, major leaders on the playing field are saying that they will not mount strong campaigns against the constitution,…
With the trial of the 15 Andijon “terrorists” still ongoing, the West has decided that it isn’t interested in ongoing diplomatic talks with Karimov over the massacre. It’s more interested in isolating the regime. At the meeting of the OSCE, the U.S. fully condemned the Uzbek government for the actions that it took. Uzbekistan????????s disregard for its OSCE commitments is undermining its security, the United States believes. The systemic failure to observe these basic rights has exacerbated circumstances in Uzbekistan and, we believe, is a radicalizing factor, Finley said. The United States, European Union, United Nations and OSCE have called…
The Kyrgyz parliament voted on President Bakiyev’s picks for cabinet positions. But it looks like more than a few people were surprised when it decided to reject a nice handful of them, including acting foreign minister Roza Otunbaeva. 27 September 2005 (RFE/RL) — Kyrgyzstan’s parliament today debated President Kurmanbek Bakiev’s cabinet nominations, approving some but rejecting others. The most notable rejection was Roza Otunbaeva to be foreign minister. Otunbaeva served in that post for a time in the 1990s when Askar Akaev was president. Five other nominees were rejected, among them Ishenbai Kadyrbekov, nominated to be minister of transportation and…
With the announcement of a new set of cabinet ministers, the Ukrainian government is getting back to normal. Economic projections are starting to be hopeful about the future, at least in the short term, and in the very least it means some stability for awhile. But politics in Ukraine is far from normal right now. The split between Yushchenko and Tymoshenko has effectively left a lot of Ukrainian voters disillusioned with the former and cautious about the latter. Yushchenko signed a deal with arch-rival Yanukovich in order to get Yekhanurov approved as the prime minister, while Tymoshenko went to Russia…
Hey everyone, Corresponding with SGD’s official press release below, I will be organizing a Walk For Democracy here in Boston, Massachusetts on Saturday the 15th of October. I urge anyone who is able to attend to email me: robertmayerÉgmail.com The donation will be $15 minimum, which will get you a t-shirt to wear with the other demonstrators. You can use the button below to donate, which will then be transferred on to SGD. You do not have to attend the march to donate, however, and you don’t have to donate just $15. If you would like to contribute to a…
This is great. Gateway Pundit has the roundup. And the left fades into oblivion…
Over the weekend, the Azeri opposition staged a rally that was unsanctioned by the government. The consequences for doing so were disastrous, with the police arresting up to 100 activists in one fell swoop, beating with batons dozens more. With elections coming up in just over a month, it goes to show how a government afraid for its own existence is beginning to take a hard line against the opposition. Police in the former Soviet Azerbaijan republic have beaten and arrested dozens of protesters during a rally in the capital, Baku. Opposition parties held the rally despite a warning from…
The trial of the 15 Andijon “terrorists” is underway, and the results are all too predictable. The defendants are admitting complete guilt, straight down the government line. Nathan is rounding up all the coverage of the trials, and describes it as, “a parade of confessions confirming every last detail of the Uzbek government????????s paranoid fantasies.” RFE/RL digs down deep into what this all means, saying that it is just the continuation of years of well-established pattern. It’s really something completely out of 1984, a compelling article to say the least, though it shouldn’t come as any surprise. Prague, 21 September…
The United States government could be readying up a drive to deal with Burma, one of the six main “outposts of tyranny” with one of the most repressive regimes in the world. To do this, it will be pushing for a referral to the United Nations Security Council, where at best we will be able to find out where all of the world’s major players stand on the issue. Sep 22, 2005 (DVB) – US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Eric G. John told a congressional committee that Washington intended to push for United Nations Security Council discussion of Burma,…