The Crisis of European Democracy
If proof were needed of the maxim that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, the economic crisis in Europe provides it. The worthy but narrow intentions of the European Union’s policy makers have been inadequate for a sound European economy and have produced instead a world of misery, chaos and confusion.
There are two reasons for this.
First, intentions can be respectable without being clearheaded, and the foundations of the current austerity policy, combined with the rigidities of Europe’s monetary union (in the absence of fiscal union), have hardly been a model of cogency and sagacity. Second, … Seguir leyendo
Egypt’s revolution won’t end with the presidential election
The apartment blocks on my street in downtown Cairo have accommodated many cycles of Egypt’s political tumult in the past 18 months. A stone’s throw from Tahrir Square, they have been enveloped in teargas, pockmarked by Molotov cocktails, pressed into use as urban barricades by both revolutionaries and pro-Mubarak militias, and provided the backdrop for some of the post-Mubarak military generals’ most violent assaults on the citizens they swore to protect. They gaze over the gardens of the Egyptian Museum – a regular home for one of the army’s pop-up torture and detention centres where those still daring to rally … Seguir leyendo
A lesson from Serbia
Two weeks after the political earthquake in Greece, Serbia has now registered a powerful aftershock with the defeat of its incumbent president, Boris Tadic, at the hands of an erstwhile extreme nationalist on Sunday.
The election may look like a localised Serbian matter but it has the potential to develop into a regional and European problem. Apart from the dramas surrounding the Hague war crimes tribunal, the Balkans region has been away from the limelight for many years now. But several of its most significant political and constitutional problems remain unresolved. And now the corrosive impact of the recession and … Seguir leyendo
The least bad option on Iran
It is a bad outcome — but it is the least bad of the available options.
When world powers meet with Iran on Wednesday in Baghdad, they may reach an interim nuclear deal. Its precise outline is unknown, but it reportedly includes Iran’s agreement to cease weapons-grade uranium enrichment, ship its existing stockpile abroad for conversion into reactor fuel, and accept heightened inspections of its nuclear infrastructure. In exchange, Iran would be allowed to continue enrichment at low levels, and the punishing new American banking sanctions and European Union oil sanctions due on July 1 would be eased.
Iran has … Seguir leyendo
Iranians Taking Solace in the Past
Last fall, while reporting on the U.N. General Assembly, I had the chance to meet a number of Iranian journalists accompanying President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on his trip to New York.
At the time, these young Iranian writers told me they were excited about the revolution in Egypt and the possibility of normalized relations between Cairo and Tehran. They were eager to hear about my travels in Egypt, a country they had never seen, and were especially interested in learning about the tomb of Iran’s last monarch in Cairo.
To my surprise, my revelation to them that Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi’s … Seguir leyendo
Realistic optimism on nuclear talks with Iran
Iranian negotiators will meet for a second time with representatives of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany on Wednesday in Baghdad. Guarded optimism surrounds the talks. That optimism and caution is appropriate. Many obstacles must be overcome between these talks and an agreement. Failure is a real possibility. But the stars appear to be aligning for progress.
Iran operates with a historical precedent for reaching an agreement. In July 1988, Iraq, after eight years of war with Iran, launched strategic air raids against Iran’s industrial plants and began sending rockets into Tehran. The rockets caused little damage but generated … Seguir leyendo
El nuevo rumbo de Turquía
Últimamente Turquía ha estado en el primer plano de los debates internacionales de economía y política. Por un lado, a pesar de la crisis económica que envuelve a la vecina Europa, nuestro país sigue siendo la segunda economía de más rápido crecimiento después de China. Por otro lado, casi no hay tema en la agenda mundial -de Irak y Afganistán a Somalia, Irán y la Primavera Árabe, y del desarrollo sostenible a un diálogo entre las civilizaciones- en el que Turquía no tenga un papel visible.
Se trata de un fenómeno bastante nuevo. Hasta hace una década, nuestra nación era … Seguir leyendo
Egypt’s military must stop torturing detainees
As Egyptians prepare for their milestone presidential election this week, thousands of activist youths who spearheaded the revolution — the very ones who made the election possible — will not be casting a vote. Instead, they are in prison, facing military trials.
On May 4, more than 350 protesters, including 16 women and 10 children, were arrested near Defense Ministry in the Abbaseya neighborhood of Cairo, adding to the approximately 12,000 political prisoners detained since the Revolution.
The Abbaseya protesters fortunate enough to be released from detention have revealed horrific stories of torture and abuse at the hands of military … Seguir leyendo
What does Iran want from nuclear talks?
When Iranian officials arrive at the next round of nuclear talks in Baghdad on May 23, they will seek to advance several of their own goals, while only making modest changes to their nuclear program.
Tehran’s goal is to engage with the United States. Although the meeting will involve six world powers — Russia, China, France, the UK, Germany and the United States — it is the only venue it has to speak to American officials.
Any breakthrough in talks with Washington might help ease mounting tensions with America’s allies in the Middle East, including the Gulf Arab States and … Seguir leyendo
No Model for Muslim Democracy
It is fashionable these days for Western leaders to praise Indonesia as a model Muslim democracy. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has declared, “If you want to know whether Islam, democracy, modernity and women’s rights can coexist, go to Indonesia.” And last month Britain’s prime minister, David Cameron, lauded Indonesia for showing that “religion and democracy need not be in conflict.”
Tell that to Asia Lumbantoruan, a Christian elder whose congregation outside Jakarta has recently had two of its partially built churches burned down by Islamist militants. He was stabbed by these extremists while defending a third site from … Seguir leyendo
The PRI peril in Mexico
The Mexican version of the old Soviet Politburo is poised to make a comeback, with potentially disastrous consequences for North America. In 2000, the world hailed the end of more than 70 years of rule by the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, as a sign of democratic transition. Today, the PRI’s presidential candidate in the July 1 election, Enrique Peña Nieto, threatens to bring back the authoritarian ways of the past.
The PRI has not cleaned up its act or modernized over the last 12 years. To the contrary, it has deepened its networks of corruption and illegality in the … Seguir leyendo
Abandoning women in Afghanistan
Want to see a real “war on women?” Wait until 2014 when U.S and NATO forces effectively leave Afghanistan to the whims of the bloodthirsty Taliban.
The savagery will make the alleged Republican sins against women — as politically motivated Democrats have charged — pale in comparison. The Taliban’s strict enforcement of Sharia law, or Islamic law, has resulted in what can be described without exaggeration as a scourge against women.
The atrocities run from everyday humiliations such as the required wearing of turtle-shell burqas, to the denial of education and other rights, “honor” killings, public stonings, and rape.
In … Seguir leyendo
The Final Task for Egypt’s Brass
Egypt’s presidential election this week is shaping up as a high-stakes, winner-takes-all contest for power in the absence of clearly defined rules.
Questions remain as to who should draft a new constitution, what authority the new head of state might have, particularly in relation to the legislative branch, and what role the military might play in the burgeoning political system. With candidates from the revolutionary movement, Islamists and members of the old guard vying for leadership, the election could be one final opportunity for Egypt’s de facto ruler, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, to help usher in a … Seguir leyendo
Indonesia’s Rising Religious Intolerance
Just a few days after Lady Gaga’s concert in Indonesia was canceled after protests by Islamic groups, I flew 1,370 kilometers from Jakarta to Padang, West Sumatra, and drove a further 130 kilometers, a four-hour journey along rough, winding roads, to Sijunjung, to visit an Indonesian atheist jailed for his beliefs.
Alex Aan, a 30-year-old civil servant, is a gentle, soft-spoken, highly intelligent young man who simply gave up his belief in God when he saw poverty, war, famine and disaster around the world.
He faces the possibility of up to six years in prison, charged with blasphemy, disseminating hatred … Seguir leyendo
A Flawed Court in Need of Credibility
Ten years ago, when the treaty creating the International Criminal Court took effect, the prospect of holding heads of state and powerful warlords to account for mass slaughter seemed like science fiction.
Today the signs carried by Syrian protesters demanding “Assad to The Hague” are powerful testimony that the court is making its presence felt.
But as the I.C.C.’s influence grows, its promise of impartial justice for the world’s worst crimes is at risk of being undercut by international politics.
The I.C.C. has committed its share of missteps. Some are performance problems of its own making. At the same time, … Seguir leyendo