Politics
Politics
Fair Observer's analysis of political issues, events and trends and their national, regional and international consequences.
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As the European Union is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, separatist movements are gaining momentum across the continent. Background The key separatist movements that are currently vying for independence in Europe are those in Spanish Catalonia and Basque Country, Belgian Flanders and Scotland. A number of less advanced movements also simmer, such as in Italy’s South Tyrol (Alto Adige), in Turkish Cyprus or the Sami regions in Finland, Sweden and Norway. Historic cultural differences are being fuelled by the economic crisis, forcing the wealthier regions to believe that they will be better off on their own or, more precisely, as independent states within the European Union. By offering...
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Ghandi / Hunger Strike / non-violence / Politics / resistance / Focus Article / BRIC / Middle East / Africa / AsiaVisualizing Palestine presents an infographic exploring hunger strikes. Throughout history, hunger strikes have been used as a form of non-violent resistance against injustice and oppression. Between December 2011 and April 2012, a cascade of hunger strikes among Palestinian political prisoners began as they protested their administrative detention. This policy, imposed by Israel, means that Palestinians can be detained in prisons without charge or trial for up to six months, a term that be renewed indefinitely. Since 1967, the equivalent of 40% of the Palestinian male population has been detained by Israel. Visualizing Palestine released “Hunger Strikes” in...
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18th People's Congress / 360° Analysis / China / Communist party / Inland-Coastal gap / Leadership change / Politics / AsiaBy Yue XiChina’s leaders are facing an enormous coastal-inland income gap. Beijing will have to embrace serious reforms to unravel social tensions. On 28 September, China finally announced that the 18th Party Congress would be held on 8 November, two days after the US general elections. The 18th Party Congress, an important event in Chinese leadership transition, is seen by many observers of Chinese politics as a turning point for China’s development trajectory. The newly installed fifth generation leaders are expected to push for reforms that will make China's pattern of development sustainable. However, there is no consensus among Chinese elites or the general public as to what...
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China / Chinese Communist Party / corruption / Leadership change / Politics / Xi Jinping / 360° Context / AsiaA new leadership has taken charge in China; its decisions are going to determine the fate of the Middle Kingdom and the rest of the world. Background The Chinese Communist Party (CPC) has just concluded its once-in-a decade congress. Delegates, no less than 2270 of them, met in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing to nominate the Middle Kingdom’s new leadership. The official line is that the party’s Central Committee has elected the members of the Politburo and the Standing Committee. The former is a group of 25 people who oversee the party while the latter is China’s most powerful decision making body. The truth about the congress is that there was no election....
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360° Analysis / Lebanon / Palestine / Politics / Syria / Middle EastBy Dina AmerThousands of Palestinian refugees have fled Syria amidst the ongoing civil war. However, for them, the fate of discrimination and inequality in Lebanon is just as dire as the fate of violence in Syria. Meesar Lahan’s personal story represents thousands of Palestinian refugees filtering into the Shatila refugee camp of Lebanon from war-stricken Syria. Their move to Lebanon represents a second displacement (the first being from Palestine), and many of these refugees are giving up hope, some even considering a return with their families back to Syria. The labyrinth of discrimination and segregation specific to the already existing Palestinian refugee population of Lebanon has made many...
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360° Analysis / blue / blue states / Maps / obama / Politics / President / presidential elections / purple / red / red states / Romney / United StatesFor all the talk of red states and blue states, much of America is really purple. That simple observation has inspired some great alternatives to the standard red and blue maps depicting electoral outcomes. Princeton’s Robert Vanderbei, for example, has created an animation that makes three improvements on the standard red/blue map: he maps counties not just states; he uses shades of purple to reflect the mix of Democratic and Republican votes; and he uses green for third parties. Here’s his animation for the 1960 to 2008 elections; keep an eye out for Ross Perot. (Vanderbei also has a static version of the 2012 results.) ...
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360° Analysis / Cheol-soo / Kim Dae-jung / Kim Young-sam / Myung-bak / Politics / presidential elections / South Korea / AsiaThe South Korean presidential election is taking place on December 19. Since the independent candidate Ahn Cheol-soo entered the electoral campaign, the power constellations have changed. After months of speculation, on September 19, Ahn Cheol-soo entered the race as an independent candidate to become South Korea’s next president. The current president, Lee Myung-bak will be ending his five-year term and by constitutional mandate, is not allowed to run for a second term, a good thing for him since polls show his current approval rating at a paltry 29.7 percent. His party, the conservative Saenuri Party (New Frontier Party) nominated Park Geun-hye as its standard bearer....
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360° Analysis / Assad / Politics / Syria / Middle EastThe establishing of the “Free Alawites” is a ray of hope for some in the Syrian opposition who have assumed that the entire Alawite sect is with Assad to the very end. By Daniel DePetris The otherwise bloody revolt taking place in Syria experienced an unexpected positive development when a new group of anti-regime activists was formed in early October. Unlike the dozens of rebel brigades proliferating across the country, the new organization is trying to resurrect the nonviolent tactics that the Syrian opposition used during the first few months of the rebellion last year, when demonstrations and calls for civic activism filled the squares of towns across Syria. But more...
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360° Analysis / Elections / Mexico / Nieto / pena nieto / Politics / AmericasMexico’s President-Elect Pena Nieto has bold plans to reshuffle public perception of corruption away from the top leadership and towards the local government. Peña Nieto`s Three Opening Gambits Mexican President-Elect Enrique Peña Nieto seems to have already prepared three term-opening political gambits. They all hinge on a re-negotiation of corruption in Mexico. The combined success of this opening flurry may well determine the overall success of the new regime. If these initial efforts prove successful, we will presumably see a “stronger” Mexico in the international arena. He may succeed in managing the nation’s “corruption” in a much more...