April 2011, Volume 22, Issue 2

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from the “Roadmap for a Nation of Rights and the Rule of Law” issued by a group of 13 Egyptian NGOs together as the Forum of Independent Human Rights Organizations. Egypt On February 12, after Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak stepped down following weeks of protests against his rule, the Forum of Independent Human Rights…

October 2010, Volume 21, Issue 4

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from: remarks by Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt, U.S. secretary of state Hillary Clinton, and president of the European parliament Jerzy Buzek given to mark the tenth anniversary of the Community of Democracies; the inaugural address of president of the Philippines Benigno S. (Noynoy) Aquino III.

April 2012, Volume 23, Issue 2

Václav Havel (1936–2011)

A tribute to Václav Havel—one of the most revered democratic leaders and thinkers of our time—who passed away on 18 December 2011. Included are a document issued by the signers of China's Charter '08 and some reflections, originally published in the Mainichi Daily News, by Aung San Suu Kyi.

April 2006, Volume 17, Issue 2

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from: the inaugural address of Liberian president Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf; a statement by Singaporean activist Chee Soon Juan, the secretary-general of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party; a resolution calling for the “International Condemnation of the Crimes of Communist Regimes.” 

October 2016, Volume 27, Issue 4

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from: the inauguration speech by Peruvian president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski; Ennahda party president Rachid Ghannouchi’s remarks on religion and state in Tunisia; inaugural award ceremony of the Darnal Award for Social Justice; Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte's inaugural address; Philippine senator Leila de Lima’s speech on extrajudicial killings.

January 2017, Volume 28, Issue 1

Documents on Democracy

Prime Minister Theresa May on the U.K. vote to leave the European Union; former U.S. secretary of state Madeleine Albright on Václav Havel; joint statement by U.S. representatives Peter J. Roskam (R-Ill.) and David Price (D-N.C.) on the threat of corruption.

Summer 1991, Volume 2, Issue 3

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from: the Ethiopian People’s Democratic Movement party program; the “Mexico Declaration” on the civil war in El Salvador; the manifesto of Kenya’s newly launched “National Democratic Party”;  Freedom House president Max Kampelman’s remarks on the Dalai Lama. 

April 2016, Volume 27, Issue 2

Making Democratic Waves

A review of Making Waves: Democratic Contention in Europe and Latin America Since the Revolutions of 1848 by Kurt Weyland.

The Rebirth of the Liberal World Order?

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has given the world’s democrats a renewed sense of unity and purpose. Putin’s reckless gamble may unexpectedly strengthen democracy in Europe and beyond. 21 March 2022 By Lucan Way As Russian rockets bombarded Kyiv on the night of Thursday, February 24, the world appeared to be on the cusp of…

Fall 1990, Volume 1, Issue 4

Documents on Democracy

The complete text of the “Freedom Charter,” the basic statement of principles of the anti-apartheid African National Congress party of South Africa.

April 2024, Volume 35, Issue 2

Documents on Democracy

Yulia Navalnaya’s speech after her husband’s death; Russian human-rights activist Oleg Orlov’s closing court statement; “Dictateur” by Senegalese hip-hop artist and social-justice activist Gunman Xuman; a speech from Mexico’s “March for Democracy”; a letter to Nicaraguans from the Group of 94; “120 Days in Secret Detention” by Chinese activist Li Qiaochu.

April 2004, Volume 15, Issue 2

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from a United Nations report on the feasibility of early elections and possible alternatives in Iraq; an inaugural address by Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili delivered in Tbilisi on January 25; a letter signed by more than 100 reformist Iranian parliamentarians criticizing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for approving the Guardian Council disqualification of more…

July 2018, Volume 29, Issue 3

Documents on Democracy

Courage Tribute acceptance speeches from the World Movement for Democracy’s Ninth Assembly in Dakar, Senegal; Organization of American States (OAS) statement on Cuba’s presidential succession; French president Emmanual Macron’s address before the European Parliament; report by the Foreign Affairs Committee of the U.K. Parliament on Russian money laundering

October 2019, Volume 30, Issue 4

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from: a statement by the Sudanese Forces for Freedom and Change; a speech by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky; a speech by journalist Maria Ressa; a speech by Hong Kong democracy activist and musician Denise Ho; a speech by Cyril Ramaphosa, president of South Africa; a statement by Konstantin Kotov.

January 2025, Volume 36, Issue 1

Documents on Democracy

A Hong Kong prodemocracy activist’s statement upon her sentencing; Georgia’s president denounces the election results; Alaa Abd el-Fattah was named Writer of Courage and joint recipient of the 2024 PEN Pinter Prize; an open letter for Xu Zhiyong; and a Nigerian senator condemns the arrests of youth protesters.

October 2024, Volume 35, Issue 4

Documents on Democracy

An interview with Vladimir Kara-Murza; María Corina Machado on the Venezuelan opposition movement; a speech from Bangladesh’s new interim chief advisor; an open letter from Tunisian opposition candidates; a professor on the youth anticorruption protests in Uganda; and NATO’s seventy-fifth anniversary.

July 2004, Volume 15, Issue 3

Documents on Democracy

Excerpts from: the Alexandria Declaration, a document emanating from a March 2004 conference on Arab reform convened under the auspices of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak; an initiative on political reform issued by the first Arab Civil Forum on March 22; the Tunis Declaration, issued at the end of the Arab Summit; a response from 34…