Authoritarianism

Collective Punishment as War Crime: 90% of Afghan Families Lack enough Food because the West is Punishing the Taliban

By John Sifton | – ( Foreign Policy in Focus ) – Afghanistan’s humanitarian situation is spiraling into catastrophe. Millions of Afghans are now facing severe economic stress and food insecurity in the wake of the Taliban’s August takeover, set off by widespread lost income, cash shortages, and rising food costs. Officials with the UN […]

Authoritarianism

End of Democracy in Tunisia: Unprecedented Confiscation of Power by the Presidency

Human Rights Watch

( Joint Statement of Human Rights Watch et al.) – The promulgation on September 22, of Presidential Decree No. 117 implicitly abrogating the constitutional order in Tunisia is a first step towards authoritarianism. This turning point threatens the human rights and democratic aspirations of the Tunisian people. While recognizing the limits of the current political […]

Authoritarianism

Tunisia: President’s Repressive Policies Abrogate Rights: Dozens Placed Under Arbitrary House Arrest (HRW)

Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch (Tunis) – Arbitrary and politically motivated acts of repression have proliferated in Tunisia since July 25, 2021, when President Kais Saied suspended parliament, Human Rights Watch said today. He also lifted parliamentary immunity, dismissed the head of government, and took control of the office of the public prosecutor. Three parliament members have […]

Authoritarianism

Is Tunisia’s president largely responsible for the disaster he says he is trying to fix with his Coup?

Middle East Monitor

By Adnan Hmidan | – ( Middle East Monitor ) – The constitutionally-limited role of the president of the republic in Tunisia doesn’t encourage involvement or intervention in day to day affairs; that is the role of parliament and the government, headed by the prime minister. This has vexed constitutional law professor Kais Saied, who […]

Authoritarianism

Why does he Hate our Freedoms? White Nationalist Extremist Tucker Carlson touts Orban’s Hungarian Fascism as better than America

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Extreme white nationalist Tucker Carlson took his Fox Cable “News” show on the road to extreme white nationalist Hungary this week. It reminded me a little of when Stephen Colbert went to New Zealand and hung out with Prime Minister Jacinda Arden, except that both Colbert and Arden are very […]

Authoritarianism

Tunisia: the complex issues behind the presidential power-grab

The Conversation

By Mariam Salehi | – Ten years on from the Arab uprisings, Tunisia has often been presented as a rare success story. Elsewhere Egypt sank into an army dictatorship, Syria, Libya and Yemen into bloody civil war. In other countries, meanwhile, such as Bahrain, the protests were put down with ferocity and the old regimes […]

Authoritarianism

1/6 Committee: Can a Pinochet-Style Chilean Dictatorship be Forestalled in the United States?

Jill Richardson

( Otherwords.org) – If you believe violence instead of voting is justified, I implore you to at least consider the alternative viewpoint. By Jill Richardson | July 28, 2021 As the congressional investigation into the January 6 insurrection gets underway, we’re learning disturbing new details about Trump supporters’ violent attempt to overturn the 2020 election. […]

Authoritarianism

Tunisia’s presidential power-grab is a test for its democracy

Open Democracy

By Larbi Sadiki and Layla Saleh | – ( OpenDemocracy.net ) – In a shocking move, Tunisia’s President Kais Saied invoked Article 80 of the country’s constitution on 25 July, the nation’s annual Republic Day. Citing “exceptional” circumstances, he sacked Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi, froze the Parliament and lifted the immunity of its members, granted […]

Authoritarianism

Tunisia’s President just made the kind of Coup Trump and US Republicans plotted (and are plotting) Against President Biden

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Al Jazeera reports that Tunisian President Kais Saied dismissed the prime minister, prorogued parliament for 30 days, stripped parliamentarians of their immunity and appointed himself the country’s attorney general in what the opposition branded a coup. Opposition leaders pointed out that the Tunisian constitution does not grant the president the […]