The Trial Will Not Be Televised: Mubarak and the Struggle for Power in the ‘New Egypt’
It is no small irony that while Egypt’s ‘new’ leadership is being lauded for making sure the Mubarak trial is not being rushed through a military court where standards of proof are lower and pressures on the defense can be higher, pro-democracy activists and protesters are being dragged through those same military courts in ever-greater numbers.
Premature Adulation in Sudan
On July 9th diplomats celebrated the birth of Africa’s newest country, South Sudan, like over-stimulated toddlers at a party. The media followed suit, with trivial and sometimes patronising stories about the new national anthem and flag, and the admittedly strange plan to create cities in the shapes of African animals. Sadly, those involved should have focused on the agenda items they failed to address before sending out the independence day invitations.
The Foreign Policy Impact of Privatized Intelligence
America is the only industrialized power that does not use its state intelligence apparatus to steal commercially valuable information on behalf of its domestic companies. What is happening today is that many US based firms are awakening to the advantages that their overseas rivals have gained from intelligence and adopting these practices themselves to fight back.
Can Terror work? The Case of the Palestine Liberation Organisation
Despite its initial success, the Palestine Liberation Organisation was never able to achieve its ultimate political objective by using terrorist tactics. The PLO’s turn to global terror tactics, and the immense amount of media exposure that move generated, only magnified their inability to move away from their formerly violent agenda.
Victims and Perpetrators: the Implications of the Dual Status of Child Soldiers
This paper will seek to investigate the ambiguous status of child soldiers looking at their victimhood, their level of agency and the resulting post-conflict implications. It will argue that although local communities and child soldiers themselves understand their inherent duality, the international discourse has yet to incorporate it, which leads to an inadequate response.
How should America react when bad things happen in unimportant places?
What should the United States do when saving strangers is the morally correct thing to do, but politically and practically, it could turn out to be a nightmare? If America is going to put the lives of its citizens at stake in situations where the primary motivation is not national interest, but an interest in common global humanity, America should be sure that she can do more good than harm.
Opinion – Australia’s Recognition of Palestine as a Catalyst
The Albanese administration’s recognition of Palestine signifies a long-calculated intersection between its principles and strategic interests in the region.
Why Libya is Not (Yet) Kosovo: The Time for a Ground Option has Arrived
Unfortunately, the events of the Libyan conflict have thus far only reinforced the lesson that there is no such thing as a “cheap” military solution to a political problem. To continue to operate under this seductive myth will only compound the error. By breaking the Libyan regime, the international community has bought its problems.
Mimicking Democracy Promotion: How Parallel Observers Undermine OSCE Election Monitoring
Parallel election monitoring does not just compete with established missions – it mimics them, subtly rewriting the rules of legitimacy from within.
Opinion – The Return of Culture in Democracies
The return of the culture to the centre stage needs to be seen as constitutive of democracies and not an aberration.
