Paraguay's political reign has always been dominated by authoritarian leadership, leaving efforts to build up democratic structures with little chance and little support.
“This people cannot yet be governed except by an iron hand lest anarchy reign.”
- Harris Gaylord Warren, Rebirth of the Paraguayan Republic
Many scholars and experts have...
The small farming community of Tekojoja has been on the front line of this struggle for years. Its history and struggle is representative of countless other farming communities in the Paraguayan countryside.
Paraguayan campesino removes soy
The community of Tekojoja is home of the Popular Agrarian Movement (MAP) of Paraguay. It is a place that has faced...
How the struggle for land in Paraguay dominates the political events as well as the political agenda in the country.
Each bullet hole on the downtown Asunción, Paraguay light posts tells a story. Some of them are from civil wars decades ago, some from successful and unsuccessful coups, others from police crackdowns. The size of the hole, the angle of the ricochet, all...
The “constitutional coup” is a major set back for Paraguayan democracy.
By Gustavo Setrini and Lucas Arce
Paraguayan democracy has taken a giant step backward since its Congress impeached President Fernando Lugo in June, plunging the country into political turmoil and diplomatic isolation. Coming only nine months before the next scheduled presidential...
Conspiracy theory or legitimate threat? Solomon Appiah says that loopholes in the global financial system exist and need to be taken seriously.
Countries have long used Economic Warfare to meet national interests by employing commerce and shipping tactics like blacklists and blockades. One could even argue that policies like structural...
Harvard's Jeffrey Frankel notes that despite all of Europe's problems, a Eurobond would be attractive to investors if it is backed up with solid economic and political fundamentals.
Any solution to the euro crisis must meet two objectives. One is short run and the other is long run. Unfortunately they tend to conflict.
The first necessary objective is to...
As the revelations pile up after the LIBOR rigging incident, it seems Europe and Britain are more committed to enforcement action than America. Real conservatives believe fully in market capitalism, that prices must come from uncorrupted market signals. Could this start a sea-change for enforcement globally?
By Bob Dowling
If you lived in Washington...
Europe's financial centers continue their slow march towards a common regulatory framework, but statements retain their characteristic vagueness
In their summit statement of June 29, 2012, the heads of state and government of the euro area issued a declaration widely...
The following is the last of a six-part series of excerpts that Fair Observer will be featuring from Jesse Aizenstat's Surfing the Middle East: Deviant Journalism from the Lost Generation.
Author...
The following is the fifth of a six-part series of excerpts that Fair Observer will be featuring from Jesse Aizenstat's Surfing the Middle East: Deviant Journalism from the Lost Generation.
Author...
The following is the fourth of a six-part series of excerpts that Fair Observer will be featuring from Jesse Aizenstat's Surfing the Middle East: Deviant Journalism from the Lost Generation.
Author...
The following is the third of a six-part series of excerpts that Fair Observer will be featuring from Jesse Aizenstat's Surfing the Middle East: Deviant Journalism from the Lost Generation.
Author...
With the traditional role models slowly shifting, women entrepreneurs contribute greatly to a changing Afghanistan society.
Women are some of the most vulnerable members of Afghanistan’s society. Afghan society has found it difficult to include women in development and entrepreneurship activities. However, owing much to the motivation of women, the situation has been...
With the 2014 withdrawal date coming closer each day, several countries are planning their exit from Afghanistan. It now becomes apparent that it is long overdue for the US to leave as well.
In the wake of several deaths among its contingent of troops in a previously peaceful province in Afghanistan, New Zealand (like France and South Korea) is now expediting the departure of...
With a complex constellation of different militant outfits and treacherous terrains in Waziristan, it would be hard to plan a full throttle offensive in the region. Yet the need for such an offensive seems inevitable as the policy makers in Pakistan are not only facing wide scale public uproar but also facing growing international pressure for allegedly sheltering the Haqqani network....
Corruption has hindered Afghanistan’s path to stability and sound democracy. The country needs to stop supporting those who are charged with fraud but back those up who fight it.
In connection to his speech at the National Assembly on June 21, President Hamid Karzai issued a decree around three weeks ago, tasking his ministries, judiciary, and prosecutors with ardent...
As an inquiry into allegations of torture and killing of civilians by the British Army in Iraq begins to hear witness testimony, Colleen Boland looks at the pluses and minuses in the practice of public inquiry.
Recently, several public inquiries in the UK have peaked interest with broad and provocative subject matter that trump the more routine investigations....
With the creation of new Police and Crime Commissioners last year, along with recent inaugural elections, the British government’s attempt to politicise the post of the Chief of Police appears to have come at a wrong time.
The PCC Elections are emblematic of the Coalition’s attempt to push power and democracy downwards and outwards. But will democratising the police...
The great sense of pride and unity that has swept the UK during the Olympics, has to be utilised in order to inspire and offer better opportunities for the younger generation.
What a difference a year makes. This time last year, London and the rest of the United Kingdom were in a state of shock as...
An analysis and commentary on the social, economic, and political dissonance in Britain and the related attempts at reform underway. This is the last in a series of three articles. Read part 1 here and part 2...
The way we experience events through media has changed dramatically in recent years, and has blurred the borders between reality and fiction.
Where were you on September 11? Everybody can easily answer this question, because we all remember what we did and how we felt when the World Trade Center in New York City was...
Arlene Atherton presents new developments in the world of television, stating that TV as we know it today will soon be outdated.
Slowly but surely, TV sets are getting discarded. Who needs a TV box in the living-room if there are computers, tablets, or smartphones at hand? “Marathon TV”, also known as “Binge TV”, is the glorious opportunity to watch what...
The sitcom format may have had its heyday, but in recent years it has enjoyed a revival, with new and complex twists.
Back in the eighties and nineties sitcom entertainment was one of the major early evening television entertainments on the big TV channels. Popular series like “The Cosby Show”, “Married…with Children”, “The Golden Girls...
HBO's medieval den of iniquity breeds discussion.
"Tears aren't a woman's only weapon. The best one's between your legs. Learn how to use it." This is the advice dispensed by the frosty Queen Cersei to her captive, and soon-to-be-daughter-in-law, Sansa. If you're feeling lost, there is nothing to worry about. You're just one of the...
It is questionable whether using simulators to test fighter jets will be sufficient to decide which ones South Korea's military will acquire. Moreover, the expected expenditure for the procurement project has to be recalculated.
South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) is stirring into the third phase of the ambitious plan to acquire new multi-role strike...
The anti-American protests spreading across the Middle East and North Africa may be fuelled by an obscure anti-Muslim American film but are really about domestic score settling and political maneuvering.
At the bottom line, the message from this week’s riots that killed US ambassador Christopher Stephens and 13 others in Benghazi, wrecked the US consulate in Libya...
A look at the political issues surrounding Libya’s first post-Qaddafi election and the varying agendas of each of the main parties.
Lenin once noted that “Sometimes decades pass and nothing happens, and then sometimes weeks pass and decades happen”; an observation that appears tailored to Libya's recent history, with events of future historical...
The Libyan people are eagerly awaiting their first election since the revolution and overthrow of their former dictator.
On July 7, a momentous event in Libya's history will take place; the first national election since 1952 and the first one open to the entire Libyan populace. Strangely for an event of such significance, little has been mentioned in the media barring the...
Despite the complicated political outlook, the system that Libya will inherit following the imminent election means that improvements to the economy and business environment will occur, argues Henry Smith.
Libya embarks on nationwide elections on July 7, eleven months after the National Transitional Council (NTC) published the Constitutional Declaration that guides the...
A glimpse at one of the oldest sports of Kerala
Having paved the way for Kung fu and Karate, Kalaripayatu is not only one of the oldest and most artistic, but also the most lethal display of athleticism on the otherwise serene topography of Kerala. A trip to one of the most internationally identifiable tourist destinations in India falls bland if you do not get a bite of this...
Sport reflects society: as society evolves, sport changes. A part of this evolution is the emergence of a new type of corruption: match-fixing for financial gain in online betting.
Over the last two decades, the popularity and impact of sport has grown and been reinforced. Great athletes are today acclaimed and praised by media, even worshipped. The Summer Olympic Games is one...
Hamas’ call to boycott the Barcelona soccer match, offers Palestinians an opportunity to vote with their feet against continued feuding Palestinian groups that have proven unable to further national aspirations or improve economic conditions.
When Spanish giants Real Madrid and FC Barcelona clashed this weekend, two matches separated by thousands of kilometers were played...
Sponsoring the Olympics offers powerful brand associations, but is there a compelling return on investment?
Lolo Jones, the American track and field star who is competing at the London Summer Games, has never won an Olympic medal. In 2008 in Beijing, she was the favorite to win gold in the 100-meter hurdles. She dominated the race, but tripped over the...
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