The Curse of the Ex-Presidents
Online Exclusive by Casey Cagley | Across Latin America, former leaders are keeping a chokehold on their countries’ politics. It’s time their successors break free.
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July 2014, Volume 25, Issue 3
Russia’s Nationalists Flirt with Democracy
Russia has witnessed a growing rapprochement between some of its nationalists and some of its democrats, but this trend is threatened by divisions over the annexation of Crimea.
January 2022, Volume 33, Issue 1
Documents on Democracy
Excerpts from: Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Summit for Democracy speech; announcement by Women’s Tennis Association cancelling future tournaments in China; statement on sentencing of Tony Chung under Hong Kong’s National Security Law; Honduran president Xiomara Castro’s inauguration address; “Nigeria Unite” by DJ Switch.
January 1994, Volume 5, Issue 1
The Axis Powers 50 Years Later: Germany—A New “Wall in the Mind”?
Read the full essay here.
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.”
January 2012, Volume 23, Issue 1
Election Watch
Reports on elections in Argentina, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Cameroon, The Gambia, Guatemala, Guyana, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Liberia, Morocco, Nicaragua, Oman, Poland, Russia, Tunisia, Zambia.
April 2007, Volume 18, Issue 2
Another Russia? Putin’s Invented Opposition
The Kremlin's ultimate need for democratic legitimacy, both at home and abroad, may be the key vulnerability of the Putin regime.
January 2008, Volume 19, Issue 1
Turkey Divided
Events surrounding Turkey's 2007 elections reveal a country with a vibrantly democratic political sphere and a society badly split over the role of Islam in national life.
January 2012, Volume 23, Issue 1
Indonesia: The Benefits of Civic Engagement
Indonesia, a populous, poor, predominantly Muslim society, has been able to maintain democracy thanks to a vibrant associational life.
October 2011, Volume 22, Issue 4
Nigeria Votes: More Openness, More Conflict
Nigeria’s 2011 presidential election offered its citizens the most competitive and transparent contest in decades, but also the bloodiest.
January 2010, Volume 21, Issue 1
Twenty Years of Postcommunism: Citizenship Restored
The 1989 revolutions in Central and Eastern Europe were the triumph of civic dignity over Leninism. The first decade of postcommunism saw the project of an open society strongly challenged by ethnocratic temptations. The most important new idea brought about by the revolutions of 1989 was the rethinking and the restoration of citizenship.
January 2010, Volume 21, Issue 1
Twenty Years of Postcommunism: Georgia’s Soviet Legacy
The central problems now blocking democracy in Georgia and other parts of the former USSR are: 1) the use of power in order to gain wealth; 2) the absence of the rule of law; and 3) the passivity of citizens.
January 2008, Volume 19, Issue 1
Sierra Leone: A Vote for Better Governance
Five years after the close of a horrifying civil war, Sierra Leone held the freest elections in its history. Voters turned out the party that had overseen the war's end, blaming it for having mishandled governance since then.
October 2007, Volume 18, Issue 4
Is East-Central Europe Backsliding? Leninist Legacies, Pluralist Dilemmas
To understand how East-Central European societies have evolved since 1989, we must understand the building blocks that contribute to the establishment and functioning of open societies.
October 2006, Volume 17, Issue 4
A “Left Turn” in Latin America? The Urgent Need for Labor Law Reform
Latin America must find a way to include its newly urbanized informal workers in more regular channels of economic and political participation. Updating outmoded labor laws is a key to accomplishing this task.
October 2006, Volume 17, Issue 4
A “Left Turn” in Latin America? Problems of Success in Chile
Chile's new Socialist president Michelle Bachelet will seek to maintain the country's socioeconomic progress, but her attempt to cure growing alienation from the traditional parties could create a new set of problems.
July 2006, Volume 17, Issue 3
Election Rigging and How to Fight It
Authoritarian regimes around the world hold elections and manipulate them every step of the way. How do we understand and work around the challenges these regimes pose to what should be a clean and democratic electoral process?
April 2006, Volume 17, Issue 2
Azerbaijan’s Frustrating Elections
The 2005 elections were marked by massive fraud, but the democratic world mostly looked the other way. Azerbaijani society remains receptive to democracy, but the regime clearly has other plans—and will soon have massive oil wealth to fund them.
January 2003, Volume 14, Issue 1
China’s Changing of the Guard: The Limits of Authoritarian Resilience
The regime has only institutionalized itself partially and temporarily; institutional norms are currently eroding, and this is likely to continue.