Human Rights Archives - Page 227 of 394

Fuelling Mistrust Between Iran and the United States

by John Gershman, Roger Howard | Sep 29, 2005

Imagine your reaction if, during last November’s presidential contest, the mullahs of Iran had suddenly launched a tirade of criticism against the American system of democracy and beamed their message onto our television sets and radios for all of us to hear: democracy in the United States, the mullahs might perhaps have claimed, is a corrupt process that is determined largely by the influence of the wealthiest donors, and a process that wholly fails to address the religious needs of a secular, materialist culture.

New Syria Acts, Looks Like Old Syria

by John Gershman, Ronald Bruce St John | Sep 29, 2005

The recently concluded Tenth Regional Congress of the Syrian Baath Party marks a watershed in the presidency of Bashar al-Asad. When faced with a make-or-break opportunity to promote desperately needed socio-economic and political reforms, he focused instead on consolidating his own power within the sclerotic Baath Party. This could prove his last chance to contain mounting internal and external pressures for meaningful reform in Syria.

Torture Convention Needs Refining

by John Gershman, Ben Saul | Sep 29, 2005

The torture scandal rocking the U.S. and British militaries in the “war on terror” is shocking because of the serious breaches of international law involved. But it also exposes serious flaws and ambiguities in the international legal framework prohibiting and criminalizing torture.

Uses of Ambiguity in North Korea Agreement

by John Feffer, John Gershman | Sep 26, 2005

With the September 19 agreement, the negotiators at least temporarily trumped the hardliners by using ambiguity as a method of achieving common ground. In November, they’ll have to risk both clarity and confrontation in order to get a real deal.

A Plan for the Post-Conflict Reconstruction of Nepal

by John Gershman, Anga R. Timilsina | Sep 21, 2005

As the king, politicians, and Maoists fiddle, Nepal is rapidly becoming a failed state. An even-bloodier phase looms ahead in the conflict, which has claimed more than 12,000 lives to date. Prospects for peace in Nepal’s ten-year-old Maoist insurgency look as bleak as ever. Even so, Nepal needs to be prepared for post-conflict reconstruction.

Afghanistans Parliamentary Elections

by John Gershman, Jim Ingalls, Sonali Kolhatkar | Sep 16, 2005

The United States has supposedly created new “democracies” in Afghanistan and Iraq, but these endeavors give democracy a bad name. Sure, the two countries have some ingredients of representative democracy, such as elected officials and a constitution. But both countries are still beset by grinding poverty, insurgencies, and entrenched militia forces that make the exercise of democracy either impractical or dangerous. Both countries have high numbers of foreign troops occupying their land and terrorizing the population while hunting “terrorists.” And both countries’ governments answer to their respective U.S. ambassador on most issues. In the midst of such a violent and coercive environment, Afghans are pressing ahead with the latest in a series of “democratic” exercises imposed by the United States: the first Afghan parliamentary elections in four decades will take place this Sunday, September 18. Even though many Afghans hope that the elections will empower them to end their troubles, the fear is that the elections will probably be as undemocratic in practice as every other U.S.-inflicted Afghan institution.

Foreign Policy In Focus Response to Terrorism Sign-on Statement

by Tom Barry | Aug 22, 2005

Between Monday, September 17 and Thursday, September 20, FPIF circulated the following sign-on letter via the Internet. Over 1,800 people, mainly academics and foreign policy experts signed the letter–a remarkable response over a short period of time. We sent out a press release Thursday afternoon, just prior to President Bush’s speech to Congress and the country, and distributed the statement to all congressional members. Those who signed included professors from 83 different colleges and universities, students from 40 academic institutions, and people from 18 different countries, ranging from Cameroon to Pakistan to Ukraine. A number of the signers also sent notes and comments.

Bombings and Repression in Egypt Underscore Failures in U.S. Anti-Terrorism Strategy

by John Gershman, Stephen Zunes | Aug 11, 2005

The devastating bombings which struck the Egyptian city of Sharm al-Sheik on July 24 underscore both the extent of the threat from Islamist terrorists and the failure of the United States and its allies to effectively deal with it.

Labors Foreign Policy Heads in a New Direction

by John Gershman, Tim Shorrock | Aug 11, 2005

Lost amidst the publicity about the breakup of the AFL-CIO at its convention last month were two events that, in their own ways, could point to a radically new foreign policy for American unions and workers.

Security Council Reform Debate Highlights Challenges Facing UN

by John Gershman, Ian Williams | Aug 10, 2005

Within a day of arriving at the United Nations John Bolton, the former lobbyist for Taiwan and advocate for one permanent seat on the Security Council, the United States, had cut a deal with the Chinese representative. China wants to stop an additional permanent Security Council seat for Japan. The United States had promised Japan its support in return for its loyalty over Iraq, but hated Germany more than it loves Japan. So the two agreed to thwart the attempt by the G-4 (Brazil, Germany, India, and Japan), to secure permanent seats during the current reform proposals.