Stories Archive | Page 11 of 73

Analyses

Yassin al-Haj Saleh, born in 1961, is one of Syria’s foremost intellectuals and a long-standing dissident against the Assad regime. He spent sixteen years in prison for “political reasons,” including time in the maximum-security facility of Tadmur, also known as Palmyra. With the onset of the Syrian Spring, he immediately emerged as an opponent of the regime.

International Affairs
Mainstreaming and Normalization of the Far-Right:
Wind of Change Before the 2024 European Elections?
Selcen Öner 19 December 2023

Although the far-right parties mostly hold Eurosceptic positions, especially before the 2019 European elections, most of them changed their rhetoric and began to emphasize that they would seek more influence within the EU institutions, aiming to transform the EU into a “Europe of nations.” These parties use the European level to increase their visibility and legitimacy by being part of a political group in the European Parliament (EP). In addition to these, we have seen the normalization of far-right-center-right coalitions. Meanwhile, there has been a radicalization of the mainstream, particularly center-right parties. These political trends at the national level may also have implications at the European level, which could be reflected in the upcoming European elections in 2024.
Human Rights, International Affairs
Erdogan’s “New Normal” Against Turkish Political Opponents
Mariano Giustino 11 December 2023

Turkey’s major human rights organizations, such as İnsan Hakları Derneği (İHD), claim that courts observe the rule of obedience to the President of the Republic. This appears to be the norm in the Turkish judiciary system, in the context of a regime where a single man rules.
Migrations
Ireland and the Dilemma of Right-Wing Violence in a Liberal Democracy
Seán Golden 6 December 2023

In the 1920s, the incipient democratic government of the newly independent Irish state managed to disarm the guerrilla forces that had fought the War of Independence by offering them the chance to become members of the new Irish police force in return for surrendering their weapons, thereby guaranteeing the state’s monopoly on violence. This means that Ireland is now faced with the dilemma of how to respond to right-wing violence while respecting the values of liberty.
International Affairs
The Domino Effect: How Niger’s Coup Echoes Regional Instability
Kamal Tasiu Abdullahi 27 November 2023

The recent coup in Niger, which took place on July 26, 2023, is just the latest episode in a series of events that have sent shockwaves through the region and left governments and international actors scrambling to respond. Niger, a country that experienced a relatively fair democratic transition in 2021 with the election of Mohamed Bazoum as president, has once again descended into chaos.
Migrations
The Implications of the UK’s Asylum Policy Defeat
Thomas Phillips 24 November 2023

Last week, the UK Supreme Court delivered its judgment on the legality of the government’s plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda. The ill-conceived scheme, which is based in large part on a Memorandum of Understanding between the UK and Rwanda, was unanimously held to be unlawful.
International Affairs
Karl Schwarzenberg passes away
“An extraordinary European, an extraordinary man”
Hans Rauscher 16 November 2023

Former Czech Foreign Minister, Karel Schwarzenberg passed away last week. In this obituary, translated into English for Reset DOC, highlights the European statesman’s many achievements and important contributions to the Continent’s political thought and evolution from the end of the Cold War.
International Affairs
Seyla Benhabib: “Why I Endorse the Call for an End to this Cruel Cycle of Violence”
Seyla Benhabib 15 November 2023

October 7, 2023 is not just a turning point for Israel and the Jewish diaspora; it must be a turning point for the Palestinian struggle. The Palestinian people must free themselves of the scourge of Hamas. The acts of violence by Hamas do not only constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity; they also reveal that Islamic Jihadi ideology, which revels in the imagery of violence, which has overtaken the movement.
Human Rights, Society
Habermas on Israel: a Principle of Solidarity
Research Center Normative Orders 15 November 2023

Israel’s actions in no way justify anti-Semitic reactions, especially not in Germany. It is intolerable that Jews in Germany are once again exposed to threats to life and limb and have to fear physical violence on the streets. The democratic ethos of the Federal Republic of Germany, which is orientated towards the obligation to respect human dignity, is linked to a political culture for which Jewish life and Israel’s right to exist are central elements worthy of special protection in light of the mass crimes of the Nazi era.
International Affairs
The European Far-right is Deflating: Time to Shift the Focus?
Balša Lubarda 6 November 2023

Today, the headlines warn us of the “rising far right” and the “increasing influence of the far right on contemporary politics.” Indeed, the far right has been effectively mainstreamed as a set of talking points operating in the contemporary debates on politics and society. Proof is to be found virtually on a daily basis across different political and geographical contexts, ingrained in the statements and policies of the (presumed) center-right but even the left.
Human Rights
Pakistan’s Draconian Policy of Deporting Millions of Afghan Refugees
Zafar Musyani 6 November 2023