DR Congo: President Brutally Represses Opposition via
read...
Economic reforms and democracy via CIPE Development Blog
Secret handshake club in decline via CIPE Development Blog
Burma: Free Activists Sentenced by Unfair Courts via
(New York, November 11, 2008) - Burma's military government should immediately exonerate and free about 70 activists who are being tried by unfair courts for their peaceful participation in the protests in September 2007, Human Rights Watch said today. A court inside Rangoon's notorious Insein prison today sentenced 14 of them to 65-year prison terms.
read...
Ghana’s Historic Presidential Debates via CIPE Development Blog
After the votes are cast via CIPE Development Blog
When it’s all over, it’s just begun… via CIPE Development Blog
Eastern Europe sailing into uncharted waters via CIPE Development Blog
Ukraine has just been promised $16.5 billion from the IMF to prevent its financial system from collapsing. Hungary will also receive a rescue package of yet unspecified value. The value of Polish zloty has fallen around 17 percent against the dollar over the past week, and more than 10 percent against the euro. As stock exchanges plummet, currencies collapse, and economists cut once-hot growth forecasts, these are the new hard times for the countries in Central and Eastern Europe – even those like Poland that until recently seemed relatively immune to the global financial crisis.
But it’s not just the economies of those countries that warrant closer scrutiny. The fallout of the crisis may be as big or greater in the political arena. Ukraine, for one, is not a pretty picture and...
Russia’s Medvedev (almost) Goes Web 2.0 via CIPE Development Blog
The president of Russia, Dimitry Medvedev, recently made history with the first presidential video-blog from behind the Kremlin’s mighty walls. (see it with English subtitles here). This appears to be a genuine attempt to engage Russia’s burgeoning web-culture on their own terms. However, as the Moscow Times notes, the blog is missing a key component of any blog - a section for comments.
It seems that the Kremlin view of the virtual world parallels real......
What’s Going On in Bolivia? via CIPE Development Blog
I’ve seen plenty of ‘propaganda’ movies about the destructive nature of democratic market economies. But here is an alternative - an interesting movie about the destructive nature of democratic and market reversals based on what’s been taking place in Bolivia over the past couple of years. If you have 10 minutes to spare, check it out.
You need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube......
The land of bouncy balls via CIPE Development Blog
Malaysia is rubber country. Since the British Empire introduced rubber trees into Asia during the mid-nineteenth century, Malaysia has become the world’s number one supplier of foley catheters, latex thread, and rubber gloves - nearly one in two pairs of rubber gloves worldwide come from Malaysia. It is the world’s third largest producer and fourth largest exporter of natural rubber. Recent advancements in breeding and biological techniques have raised yields, from 769,000 tons in 1999 to 1.3 million tons in 2006; the highest level since 1996 (when more individuals lived and worked in rural areas), according to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Malaysia Country Profile 2007. The same profile noted that smallholders continue to be the primary source of raw rubber...
From Elections to Democracy via CIPE Development Blog
We are constantly saying there is more to democracy than elections. So I was pleased to see a book exactly on this by Susan Rose-Ackerman, From Elections to Democracy: Building Accountable Government in Hungary and Poland. Rose-Ackerman focuses on the importance of policy-making accountability to democratic consolidation in Hungary and Poland. She explores several mechanisms in the two countries for monitoring and citizen participation, and finds most of them insufficient to achieve accountability in policy-making.
For example, government entities tasked with oversight, such as ombudsmen and audit offices, have limited independence and limited mandates, and don’t allow for citizen input into policy-making. Neocorporatist dialogue, another mechanism, tends to be directed by bureaucrats...
Play it again Viktor via CIPE Development Blog
It seems that 7% year on year growth and increased integration into the world economy through WTO membership is not enough to keep the governing coalition of Ukraine held together. Today Yulia Tymoshenko announced that if the coalition is not reformed within 10 days Ukrainians would be heading back to the polls for the third time in as many years.
“But both [Tymoshenko and Yushchenko] – expected to spar for the presidential job in the 2010 election – have effectively served divorce papers on each other. Apparently, it’s a done deal this time, ending the governing coalition and parliamentary majority they created eight months ago.” (read the article here)
In the past year the coalition government has only passed the legislation necessary for WTO integration. It...
Corporate Governance and Democracy via CIPE Development Blog
Here at CIPE we are often asked: “How does good corporate governance contribute to building functional democracies?” While I understand why good corporate governance is key, I still find it difficult to explain it in simple terms to those that question the relationship.
Today I came upon a chart put together by Philip Armstrong (now head of the Global Corporate Governance Forum) several years ago. This chart, in my view, is one of the better illustrations of how corporate governance is more than intra-company owner-management relations tool.
It clearly illustrates the relationship between internal/external stakeholders, the board of directors, management, and, most importantly, civil society. This chart captures the complex interaction between company-level... Simple Steps to Make Investors Run via CIPE Development Blog
There are many guidelines on attracting investment. There are very few on doing the opposite. But if you are indeed willing to drive away investors from your own market, you can follow these simple steps:
Step 1: Undermine rule of law by selectively nationalizing companies of oligarchs through tax inspections and other financial levers (Yukos). Have your colleagues and trusted friends fill the vacancies in the private and state-owned companies made though these actions.
Step 2: Revoke contracts with major foreign firms over concerns about the environment, and then turn over the same projects to a domestic firm (Shell).
Step 3: Threaten joint ventures between international firms and domestic companies (TNK-BP). Raid the offices of the largest foreign portfolio investor in your country...
The Silenced Majority via CIPE Development Blog
An estimated 16 million South Africans lack an operating water supply at home, and have to walk an average of one kilometer to the nearest water source. Given the average South African household is five people, that’s 3.2 million households. One household member, almost always a female, typically makes two trips daily - that’s four kilometers walked a day. Give or take a busy day at the water source, it takes about an hour to make the trip. 6.4 million trips equals 12.8 million kilometers walked, and 6.4 million hours of fetching water - which is usually of suspect quality. You’ll find similar situations for women across the developing world.
They’re expected to bear the brunt of household work even in Bangladesh, where the Bangladesh Women’s Chamber of...
Same Language - Different Story via CIPE Development Blog
Although Mr. Friedman may claim that the world is flat, we may not be quite there yet. Take a recent BBC article that cites one of Pakistan’s most prominent pro-democracy leaders claiming a senior British diplomat cut a deal with President Musharraf that guaranteed his immunity if he resigned. It is a fairly straight forward story with a claim and counter-claim while the journalist maintains a neutral position on the topic.
One of Pakistan’s most prominent pro-democracy leaders, Aitzaz Ahsan, has accused a senior British diplomat of undermining his country’s rule of law. Sir Mark Lyall Grant was in Pakistan recently and reportedly urged the government to give President Musharraf immunity if he resigned…
The British foreign office has responded to Mr...
Democracies and Economic Outcomes via CIPE Development Blog
There is a captivating quote in this op-ed on democratic struggles in Mauritania
As an old man asked me in Boghe, a small town on the Senegal River in Mauritania, “What do I care if my country is democratic or not? What does democracy do for me?” These questions haunt the Middle East.
Although it is something that seems plainly obvious, it is often ignored in much of the development work. We often assume that all people want democracy and will support it regardless of everything else given an opportunity. The reality, of course, is much more complex, especially when democratic changes that happen on the surface (i.e. introduction of elections) do not translate into real economic or social outcomes, such as jobs or incomes on the micro level.
More on making democracy...
“Building the Pillars of Democracy” via CIPE Development Blog
Democracy has made great strides around the world during the last few decades. Yet in many parts of the world the triumph of democracy has been less than absolute. Even in countries where elections take place, the liberal element of democracy is often missing and governments struggle with accountability and good governance. Why does democracy seem so fragile? What elements are required for a country to reach the threshold necessary to sustain democracy?
Hon. Anand Panyarachun, Former Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, addresses these key questions in his Feature Service article, focusing on the pillars needed to support the infrastructure of democracy and to build citizenship that extends beyond elections. He says, “In addition to responsible citizenship through participation in...
Stealing Democracy via CIPE Development Blog
If you wonder how democracy was stolen in Zimbabwe and have 10 minutes to spare, you absolutely must watch this clip produced by the......
Close Call for Turkey via CIPE Development Blog
It was a good sign when I went to read the news online this morning and had to scroll all the way down the page before finding any articles about Turkey. Once I found the New York Times article that I was looking for, it reported that Turkey’s Constitutional Court did not get the seven votes required to ban the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). Had one more judge voted for the ban, you can bet that this would be top headline material. The Court’s decision on Wednesday brought a sigh of relief to a lot of people, especially the 46.6% of Turkish citizens who elected the AKP and European Union officials who are in membership negotiations with Turkey.
A ban on the AKP would have discredited what has proved to be the best example of democracy in an Islamic country. All of the...
Youth for Change in MENA via CIPE Development Blog
Earlier this week I had a chance to hear six recent college graduates/graduate students (see bios here) present brief summaries of policy recommendations formed at youth conferences in Rabat (Morocco), Cairo (Egypt), and Amman (Jordan). The event was organized by Americans for Informed Democracy (AID) and The Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED).
Why young people’s views on reform? Youth constitute a majority of the Middle East population and, leaving universities, many young people find themselves at the crossroads - unable to get jobs in the public or private sectors.
One issue that people consistently highlighted was the idea of cultural exchange. Two representatives spoke from the experience of each conference, all three of which included cultural exchange as a...
The Difficulty of Ensuring Stability via CIPE Development Blog
Under President Putin, Special Aide and Deputy Chief of Staff of the Administration Vladislav Surkov was viewed as the Kremlin’s top “ideologist.” Now First Deputy Chief of Staff under President Medvedev, Surkov recently visited the annual summer retreat of the youth group Nashi (Ours). This Kremlin-backed project was designed to counter revolutions engineered from abroad during the 2007-2008 elections.
It’s unclear whether the Kremlin believed its own propaganda; most analysts found the idea of a tent city on Red Square laughably impossible. Perhaps Surkov, too, knew this all along, or perhaps, feedback between Russia’s government and its citizens is so distorted that revolution was considered a genuine threat. The truth is immaterial; whether the paranoia was real or staged,...
The Silly Season of Politics via CIPE Development Blog
Summer is the silly season of politics, in the world’s capitals the big fish are leaving town for their summer vacations and the vacuum of debate and dialogue gets filled with less serious issues, which none the less can become fodder for discussion in the media and at the summer resorts where the elites hang their hats. Moscow is not immune to the political silly season, Russians like long summer vacations, and it’s hard to get any work done in late July and August. Like Paris, the town empties out with ordinary folks headed to their dachas and the wealthy to the south of France.
So what are the topics of interest this silly season? In from the fringe of the debate comes a surprising contender, it appears that democracy, not the “sovereign” kind that Vladimir Putin and his...
The test of Mongolian democracy via CIPE Development Blog
Since 1990, Mongolia has been widely held as an example of a developing country that, despite the odds, managed to accomplish a peaceful transition to democracy after seven decades of communist one-party rule. But is Mongolia’s democratic transition complete? The recent unrest following an election dispute calls the progress made into question and warrants a closer look at the health of Mongolian democracy.
After the losing party’s accusations of electoral fraud – disputed by international election observers – scores of rioters (many intoxicated) attacked the headquarters of the winning party and the neighboring national art gallery. The ensuing mayhem resulted in five deaths, hundreds of arrests, and more than 1,000 priceless pieces of art destroyed or missing. But to many...
New voices on CIPE’s YouTube channel via CIPE Development Blog
Two new videos featuring CIPE partners have been added to our YouTube channel. The first one is an interview with Selima Ahmad, President of the Bangladesh Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BWCCI). In this interview, she talks about the creation of the Chamber and the importance of its work for empowering Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs and strengthening democratic institutions.
You need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube video
The second video features Marcela Prieto, Executive Director for the Instituto de Ciencia Politica (ICP) in Colombia and editor of Perspectiva Magazine. She talks about the meaning of democracy and its necessary elements beyond elections. She also addresses current challenges to democracy in Latin America and around the world and the...
Debating the Future of Reform in MENA via CIPE Development Blog
With inflation and political backtracking competing with trends of economic growth in the Middle East and North Africa, the link between economic and political reform has increasingly come under scrutiny in the region. It was a prevailing theme in the recent roundtable that CIPE held for key partners from Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey, and Yemen in Hammamet, Tunisia.
Leading private sector organizations from around the region shared successful reform approaches, focusing on entrepreneurship, advocacy, public-private dialogue, and corporate governance. Many of these programs underscore the need for institutions that promote better economic policies and expand growth dividends across a broader segment of society.
It was interesting to see partners not...
Does democracy help or hurt economic growth? via CIPE Development Blog
The question of whether democracy helps or hinders economic growth is a hotly debated one today. In a recent Foreign Policy article, Professor Yasheng Huang of MIT addresses this issue in the Asian context. The most obvious case study that comes to mind is the China-India comparison that supposedly gives the former an authoritarian edge of fast economic growth. Many believe that…
Democracies are peaceful, representative—and terrible at boosting an economy. Or at least that’s the conventional wisdom in Asia, where for years growth in India’s sprawling democracy has been humbled by China’s efficient, state-led boom. But India’s newfound economic success flips that notion on its head. Could it be that democracy is good for growth after all? If so, China better watch its back....
The Power of Democracy via CIPE Development Blog
What is democracy and why is striving toward it important? Carl Gershman, President of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), answers this question by talking about the challenges and opportunities for democratic development around the world today. He discusses the work of the NED and the importance of supporting democratic reformers wherever they are.
In many countries, advocating for democracy can still be a very risky endeavor for local reformers. Yet they do not give up and often are willing to risk their lives in the process. That unbreakable human spirit remains at the heart of the power of democracy.
You can view this and other CIPE videos here: http://www.youtube.com/user/cipeforum...
Does the end of a monarchy mean democracy in Nepal? via CIPE Development Blog
After 240 years of royal Hindu rule, Nepal is due to become a republic. What does this mean for the country?
A newly-elected assembly is to meet in the capital, Kathmandu, to abolish the monarchy. Thousands of people gathered on the streets of the capital and near the assembly in support of “republic day”. The Maoists, who emerged as the largest party in last month’s elections, are committed to removing the royal family. Nepal’s progress towards becoming the world’s newest republic has been marred by bombs being planted in the capital for two days running this week.
Though this is a promising start, Nepal still has a long way to go to become anything like a functioning modern democracy which benefits all its citizens, not just the Katmandu elite and rural...