Sri Lanka in 2015 and the (post) post-war regime A lot has changed in Sri Lanka since the start of the year. Or has it? Only time will tell. In short, on 8 January 2015 presidential elections were held in Sri Lanka. It is believed that the then-incumbent president Mahinda Rajapaksa had called the elections …
Continue reading Gilberto Algar-Faria | The UN and Sri Lanka in Testing Times
The above cartoon by Iotti summarizes the situation in Brazilian politics at the moment. The angry guy holds a sign that reads: “For the return of the military government! Dictatorship now!” The concerned lady holds a sign that reads: “For more History classes for these people!” These two characters are indicative of colliding poles in … Continue reading Marcelo Mendes de Souza | Democracy and Revisionism in Brazil: What is behind the Recent “Fora Dilma” [Dilma out] Protests?
In recent weeks there has been a flurry of reports detailing the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Yemen. In his 19th August report to the Security Council on the situation in the country, the UN’s Under-Secretary for Humanitarian Affairs, Stephen O’Brien, described the ‘scale of human suffering’ as ‘almost incomprehensible’, with ‘four out of five Yemenis … Continue reading Jeremy Moses | Who is responsible for protecting civilians in Yemen?
The Prime Minister has failed to respond to widespread concerns over New Zealand’s inaction on refugees. For more than a year, Key has claimed that now is not the time to increase our annual quota of 750 places because it has been in place for almost 30 years. Now he’s scrambling for a way to … Continue reading Murdoch Stephens | National’s refugee policies exclude most needy
From Political Marketing to Magna Carta – and back: Finding connections between an 800 year old document and modern politics I am an expert in political marketing – how politicians, parties and politicians use business techniques and concepts to win elections, achieve change and maintain power. It’s a fast moving, rapidly developing area of practice … Continue reading Jennifer Lees-Marshment | From Political Marketing to Magna Carta – and back
After one year of American-lead intervention against Daesh in Iraq, the terrorist group does not show any sign of weakening. It is hard to believe however that, despite their wealth, international support, fanaticism and good organisation, a territorially located terrorist organisation could resist the genuine military campaign of a broad coalition of forces involving the … Continue reading Nicolas Pirsoul | Is the “Islamic State” meant to stay?
Originally posted on THE CO-OP:
By Nicholas Ross Smith (University of Auckland) I unashamedly admit that I did not vote in last year’s election, even though it’s meant having to put up with tedious carping from friends who believe that voting is essential to “having a say”. The main reason I passed on my right… Continue reading Nicholas Ross Smith | We need to re-emphasise the “demos” in Democracy: Making a case for sortition in New Zealand
On the fourteenth of July, a deal was reached on the Iranian nuclear program. Both sides are boasting their diplomatic achievements. Seeing Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry, along with European Union and Russian diplomats, pose for a group picture at the United Nations building in Vienna might … Continue reading Nicolas Pirsoul | Nuclear deal with Iran: towards a new relationship between the West and the Islamic Republic?
It has been one year since the tragic downing of the Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Eastern Ukraine – which, in part, plunged Ukraine deeper into crisis with the following deterioration of the ‘War in Donbass‘ – and 20 months since the ostensible start of the Ukraine crisis. In an article I wrote in European Security … Continue reading Nicholas Ross Smith | Appraising the EU’s response to the Ukraine crisis
The recent terrorist attacks in Kuwait, Tunisia and France were horrific. A bomb set among worshippers, the shooting of beach-goers followed by a decapitation near Lyon: one condemns such atrocities and, hopes that, where possible, the perpetrators are brought to justice. Let’s be clear. Those who commit atrocities deserve to face justice. But we cannot … Continue reading Stephen Winter | Stripping the Citizen
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Pacific Outlier 