Stories about Politics from November, 2016
The Botched Affair of India's Demonetization Drive Against Black Money
"Found an ATM with cash and absolutely no crowd. The ATM has only 2000 notes hence no one wants"
Law Professor Says Trinidad and Tobago’s Education Failures Are an Abuse of Human Rights
Trinidad and Tobago's longstanding commitments to universal education are juxtaposed with the harsh reality of society's marginalised.
Mexican Governors on the Run From Embezzlement Scandals
Three runaway ex-governors accused of defrauding the treasury, money laundering, organized crime among other charges are the latest cases of high political corruption in Mexico.
Political Satire Returns to Russian TV, Neutered As Ever
Political parody is a perilous thing in Russia, where the last unbridled satire to grace the small screen came and went more than a decade ago.
Internet Freedom Declines in Russia and Ukraine, Improves in Belarus
Russia, Belarus and the Central Asian states were all rated "not free" in Freedom House's 2016 "Freedom on the Web" report.
The Hotly Contested Gambian Presidential Race Enters Its Final Stretch
In the run up to the elections, there have been anti-government political protests, mostly in the Greater Banjul Area.
Myanmar’s Refugee Returnees Struggle to Build New Lives
“We returned from a refugee camp. We didn’t come back bringing heaps of money. How are we supposed to pay 3 million kyats [US$2,200]?”
In Afghanistan, Women's Rights Still Struggle to Take Root
"Being delivered into this world by someone brain-defected, the deputy to the Kabul clerical council must himself be without a brain."
Many Africans (But Not All) Recall Fidel Castro as a True Friend of the Continent
"We won't forget how Fidel Castro supported the fight against apartheid when the 'civilized' world didn't. Castro, with his faults, was a leader."
In the Hands of the Azerbaijan Government, Beloved Novel Becomes Nation-Branding Infomercial
"Leyla Aliyeva, daughter of President Ilham Aliyev, was the executive producer of the film, which cost a reported $20 million to make."
Exit Castro: The Caribbean Says Goodbye to the Force Behind the Cuban Revolution
"To all the other Caribbean government heads, please take a page from his book. One of the good pages."
‘History Will Absolve Me': Fidel Castro Dies at 90
Fidel is a figure of legend, arguably as much for those who revere him as for those who reject his legitimacy as a leader.
One Way to Interpret Nicaragua's Presidential Election: A ‘Democracy Without Consensus’
"This discourse does not lead to dialogue, and it has not had a mobilising effect on citizens' behaviour."
Kyrgyzstan's President and the Little Personality Cult that Couldn't
"Atambayev, father of the nation? No, he's some kind of surrogate."
Yet Another Report on Extrajudicial Killings Backs Up Jamaican Human Rights Defenders’ Calls for Police Reform
Amnesty International's new report explores the abuse of power by Jamaican police and the fraught, protracted path to justice for victims' families.
In Iran, the Kurdish Struggle Remains in the Shadows
The Kurdish struggle remains one of the most compelling storylines of the Middle East. The Kurds of Iran are active, but often ignored by the international community.
How My Father Recorded 100 Days of Curfew In Kashmir
"According to Google Maps, my father has his free movement restricted to 990 metres, 10 metres less than a kilometre."
Leader of Malaysia's Anti-Corruption Movement ‘Bersih’ Arrested Under Anti-Terror Law
"Is this the type of country that we Malaysians want to live in, where corruption runs amok, elections are rigged and innocents are placed behind bars?"
GV Face: President Obama, It's About Time You Pardon Oscar López Rivera
Puerto Rican Oscar López Rivera is one of the longest serving political prisoners in the world. In this episode, we discuss the movement to get President Obama to pardon him.
Another Young Environmentalist Is Murdered in Guatemala
Jeremy Barrios' killing puts another name in the list of human environmentalists to be silenced in the region and raises concern about the State's incapability to protect its own citizens.
Has Uzbekistan's ‘Princess’ Gulnara Karimova Really Been Murdered by the Government?
This is Uzbekistan, so never expect the truth.
