Domestic Politics Archive

After three days of voting that began over the weekend, participants in a one-sided referendum held in the disputed Abyei region on the border between Sudan and South Sudan voted overwhelmingly to join the South. The vote is not binding, but depending on the reaction, the outcome could have the potential to pull these countries even further apart. With only one of two ethnic groups in the region participating, the lopsided outcome was widely expected. What remains to be seen is how people will react to the vote both in the region and in the two national capitals. “There could […]

India’s rise has been accompanied by friction both at home, as a growing middle class pushes for economic security, and abroad, as rivals China and Pakistan jockey for influence. This World Politics Review special report looks at India’s obstacles and opportunities as its seeks its place in the Asian century. Governance A Targeted Approach: India’s Expanding Social Safety NetBy Devesh Kapur and Prakirti NangiaSeptember 24, 2013 In India, Corruption Moves to Top of the AgendaBy Frida GhitisMay 2, 2013 Corruption in India: An IT ApproachBy Prashant AgrawalJanuary 10, 2012 India’s Power Grid Needs More Than Just Increased CapacityBy Catherine CheneyAugust […]

In Iraq, the civilian death toll so far this year is nearly double what it was last year, with car bombings and other attacks by al-Qaida-linked militants on the rise. The violence has been described as reminiscent of Iraq’s sectarian civil war, which peaked in 2006-2007 as Sunni and Shiite militias fought one another. But Doug Ollivant, a senior national security fellow with the New America Foundation, noted that Iraq’s recent violence is being waged almost exclusively by the Sunni extremist group al-Qaida in Iraq, which “is striking primarily Shiite civilians, government targets and their own political enemies among the […]

Following its “defeat” in the July 31 presidential and parliamentary elections at the hands of ZANU-PF, the fortunes of Zimbabwe’s opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) have reached their lowest point in the party’s 14-year existence. Any optimism the MDC may have harbored about removing ZANU-PF seems to have been extinguished, and, after five years in a government of national unity, the MDC is back where it has been for most of its lifespan: on the outside looking in, subject to persistent state harassment and seemingly powerless to halt the ZANU juggernaut. Crucially, this time the MDC also lacks the […]

Following a decade-long oil and mining boom, Colombia is facing the challenge of how to harness its energy wealth and push development forward. Since former President Alvaro Uribe opened up Colombia’s oil and mining sectors in the early 2000s, Colombia has gone from producing just more than 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2002 to nearly 1 million bpd in 2012. Over the same period, it has seen foreign direct investment inflows jump from $2.1 billion to $15.8 billion, more than half of which was destined for the oil and mining sectors last year. Some 68 percent of Colombia’s $369 […]

Last week, in the midst of a political campaign that has focused heavily on public security, authorities in Honduras deployed 1,000 military police as part of an effort to address drug violence and organized crime in this Central American country, home to the highest homicide rate in the world. Honduras is nearing its November elections, when voters will determine whether the same two parties will continue to dominate the political scene, or whether a new party will upend the election. The deployment of the newly created military police unit is another step in a 10-year process in which the Honduran […]

Since assuming the presidency in early 2010, Victor Yanukovych has tried to pursue a balance between strengthening Ukraine’s integration with Europe and maintaining a positive relationship with Russia. He has also sought to avoid having to choose between the European Union and Moscow. On one issue, however, he could not avoid a choice: Should Ukraine conclude an association agreement, including a deep and comprehensive free trade arrangement, with the European Union, or should it instead join a customs union with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan? Over the past several years, Yanukovych has consistently favored an EU association agreement, and Kyiv very […]

Rumors are swirling in Washington that the Pentagon is thinking of closing its Office of Net Assessment (ONA). Alarmed by this idea, four congressmen led by Rep. Randy Forbes wrote to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel (.pdf) demanding “a commitment to the Office of Net Assessment.” The Lexington Institute’s Daniel Goure joined the fray, opining that ONA “must be preserved and supported.” National security discussion boards and email loops quickly lit up with concern for ONA’s future. Outside Washington such passion must seem strange. ONA is a tiny organization that mostly commissions analysis and studies. Abolishing or changing a government office […]

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was discharged from the hospital this week after undergoing brain surgery to remove a blood clot. Prior to entering the hospital last week, the president had been actively campaigning for allies running in key midterm elections to be held later this month that will determine whether her party keeps control of Congress. The vote will also be seen as a test of where the parties stand ahead of the 2015 general elections. The president’s health is still being closely monitored, and she is unlikely to be able to return immediately to campaigning. Argentina has […]

They are the biggest demonstrations Romania has seen this century. Across the country and beyond, tens of thousands have taken to the streets in protests that have included a human chain around Bucharest’s massive parliament, one of the world’s largest buildings, and a rally of several hundred Romanians in London’s Trafalgar Square. If the demonstrations have gained momentum in part due to economic hardship and especially disillusionment with the political elite, they were initially triggered by a highly controversial mining project and the ecological and cultural damage that it might cause. Though environmental issues have for a long time been […]

After three decades of protracted conflict and four years of relative peace, a recent event has emerged as a sign that democracy, albeit ailing, is still alive in the island-nation of Sri Lanka. On Sept. 21, 2013, for the first time in 25 years, provincial council elections were held in the war-ravaged Northern Province, offering the country’s ethnic Tamil minority, largely present in the region, the opportunity to choose its own political destiny. Sri Lanka established provincial councils in 1987 as a result of the Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement that called for the devolution of power to the provinces in a […]

In recent media interviews, representatives of both the Pakistani government and the Pakistani Taliban have signaled willingness to engage in peace talks with the other side. In an email interview, Sadika Hameed, a fellow at the Program on Crisis, Conflict and Cooperation at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, explained the prospects for the talks. WPR: What are the factional interests—on the part of the national and provincial governments, the militants and others—in holding peace talks with the Pakistani Taliban? Sadika Hameed: Many political parties campaigned in the elections held in May on the basis of talks with the […]

Tainted by scandals and controversies, some bordering on the absurd, Azerbaijan’s presidential election is now over. In a country where the monopolistic ruling party can easily manipulate everything from the voter registries to the list of international election observers, the incumbent’s victory by an 80 percent margin should come as no surprise. After all, elections in autocracies like Azerbaijan mean little in terms of domestic power struggles. But what will President Ilham Aliyev’s third term mean to the outside forces, such as the U.S. government, that can engage his regime on a more level playing field than can his domestic […]

The U.S. Department of State announced on Wednesday that it would be “recalibrating” its aid to Egypt, holding back the delivery of $260 million, most of it military assistance, from the $1.5 billion annual U.S. aid package for Egypt. By delaying the delivery of military systems including tanks, missiles and aircraft, and suspending some cash assistance to the Egyptian government, the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama is hoping to push Egypt down a path toward civilian governance through free and fair elections. But the two experts who spoke with Trend Lines do not believe that the move will achieve […]

After months of halting but positive movement, the peace talks between the government and Colombia’s largest rebel group, the FARC, may have hit a roadblock. That obstacle, as WPR’s Frida Ghitis wrote last week, is Colombia’s fast-approaching elections. Ghitis warned that the electoral schedule is casting a shadow over the negotiations: “As the clock runs down to the May 2014 presidential election, the prospect of peace hangs in the balance for the country. Colombians are getting restless, taking a decidedly unfavorable view of the president and becoming increasingly suspicious of the secretive process.” Over the past week, signs have emerged […]

The Oct. 7 decision of the Supreme Court of the Maldives to annul the results of the presidential election held a month prior appears to be an attempt to avert the predictable win of ousted President Mohamed Nasheed, a liberal Muslim fighting a lonely battle against powerful conservative forces. Nasheed secured 45.45 percent of the vote, just short of an outright victory. The second-place candidate, Abdulla Yameen, the half-brother of former longtime dictatorial President Maumoon Gayoom, received 25.35 percent. The other two candidates, resort tycoon Qasim Ibrahim and incumbent President Mohamed Waheed got 24 percent and 5 percent of the […]

As the central drama of the just-concluded United Nations General Assembly played out, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the final speaker of the session, performed a supporting but crucial role. He came on stage as the mood spoiler, the man who disrupted the central narrative of a new, nonthreatening Iran under President Hasan Rouhani ready to reconcile with the world. Netanyahu told the world to wake up and realize that Iran’s new image was all a fiction. The prime minister’s stern words elicited a wide range of responses, including harsh criticism. In Israel, many found the address jarring. There was […]