Mass incarceration and militarized police forces are two of the most potent tools of repressive instruments of power. From the death and destruction in Israel’s latest war on Gaza to the dramatic arrival of the national guard on the streets of Ferguson, Missouri, there have been plenty of brutal reminders on display of the violence that underpins racist repression. But amid the headlines,... Continue Reading
Regardless of their views on the An-Nahda led-government, most Tunisians agree on one thing: that the country is experiencing a counter-revolutionary moment. The tragic assassination of leftist politician and human rights defender Chokri Belaid in Tunis is one of a series of incidents of political violence to hit the country in recent months. Belaid’s assassination has left the nation... Continue Reading
Bahrain needs to set about the hard work of healing societal cleavages, to build the truly sovereign and democratic country which the majority of its citizens appear so determined to achieve. If their much-touted ‘democracy promotion’ rhetoric is to have any real significance, western governments must help rather than hinder this process. Despite the recent flurry of news on the Bahrain... Continue Reading
Often overlooked in the western press have been the collective, or one could say national, grievances of the Tunisian people, expressed as frustration at Tunisia’s lack of real sovereignty in a global order enforced by international institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank. Though the dramatic events of the last few months have provided much cause for hope in Tunisia, many obstacles... Continue Reading
Despite the best efforts of the US and its European and regional allies to ignore them, international and regional factors that enabled the domestic power structures to remain in place for so long have also been the focus of protesters’ grievances and demands. Though the dramatic images of popular uprisings, mass mobilisations, and counter-revolutionary violence in North Africa and the... Continue Reading
