Our latest political reviews.

Erdogan: Turkey’s Misunderstood Prime Minister

A capable leader is under attack by a rare form of secular extremism
Gabriela Perdomo - Turkey’s promising democracy is facing a major challenge as a battle to defend the country’s secular mandate is turning into an almost-religious crusade. The Asian country standing at the door of the European Union (EU) faces a tough question: is radical secularism the only way to prevent Turkey from becoming an Islamist state?
June 17, 2008

The Problem with Sarkozy

He got divorced and remarried. What else did the French president do in his first year in office?
Gabriela Perdomo - It is hard to find out. Nicolas Sarkozy’s administration has delivered on some of his campaign promises, but nobody seems to know that. For most of his first year at the Élysée, all eyes were too set in the president’s personal soap opera to care about policy decisions. His family life has stabilized now so there is no more media craze left. Now Sarkozy must face the fact that this operetta has harmed both his persona and his mandate to make decisions as France’s head of state.
May 30, 2008

The Afghanistan Question

Citizens of Western nations engaged in the war on terror are growing impatient with the lack of results.
Gabriela Perdomo – Call it the Iraq war effect. With no doubt left that the coalition effort to topple Saddam Hussein has turned to be the biggest military mess of our time, people in various Western nations with troops in Afghanistan are now turning their eyes to the war on terror and wondering, is Afghanistan the next Iraq?
May 01, 2008

Bolivia at the Brink of Separation

A new constitution brings out the deepest divisions in the Andean nation.
Gabriela Perdomo - Evo Morales, Bolivia’s first indigenous president, called it an opportunity to "re-found" the nation. With the final draft now ready, Bolivia’s constitution looks more likely to split the nation in two.
April 03, 2008

The Twisted Harmony of Zimbabwe

The country votes for everything at the same time, but Mugabe remains firmly in charge.
Mario Canseco - Robert Mugabe will seek a new term in office this Saturday, in the "harmonized" election that will see voters choose a president, select a new House of Assembly, renew a Senate that has been in place for just 26 months, and pick the members of their local councils.
March 26, 2008

The “Anti-China” 2008 Games

Political activists and civil groups take the 2008 Olympic Games as a chance to underline China’s grim human rights record. Will they bring change?
Gabriela Perdomo - It is hardly a fringe movement. The voices calling for a boycott of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing are growing in number by the minute. It would be naïve to think they will succeed, but one can guess that their accusations will continue to resonate well after the spectacular games are over.
March 12, 2008

Castro Retires. What Will Happen to His Legend?

The future of Cuba is as uncertain as the legacy left by its strongman.
Gabriela Perdomo - Forty-nine years after leading a triumphant revolution, Fidel Castro has told Cuban legislators he will not stand for president again. The speculation from now on will be endless. Some will say the United States is ready to ship Miami Cubans into their motherland in a matter of days. Others will say Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez has been handed the baton of Cuba’s future.
February 20, 2008

After Super Tuesday’s Super Tie

While no coronations took place on either side of the American political spectrum, the barrage of primaries and caucuses left much to ponder.
Mario Canseco - Six months ago, it seemed reasonable that this would be the day to start writing political obituaries, assess the head-to-head contests of the two winners of the presidential primary season, and review which campaign still had the war chest to tackle a national race. After the final numbers of Super Tuesday became available, both contests are nowhere near done.
February 07, 2008

Kenya at a Crossroads

Mwai Kibaki's reelection triggers violence, showing the gloomy face of a prosperous African nation.
Gabriela Perdomo - Over 600 hundred people have died and close to 2,500 have been displaced in Kenya’s current turmoil, triggered by a tight and questionable presidential election that saw the incumbent winning a second term in office in late December.
January 20, 2008

New Hampshire’s Special Effects

The result of the Granite State’s primaries baffled pollsters, and prompted an assessment of existing methods.
Mario Canseco - Last Tuesday afternoon, a victory by Illinois senator Barack Obama in the New Hampshire Democratic primary was widely expected. An average of surveys predicted it, and the best example of the over-confidence that the collection of numbers brought to Obama’s campaign arrived after his semi-concession speech, when Stevie Wonder’s "Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours" blasted through the sound system at his rally. "Superstition" would have probably been a better choice.
January 12, 2008

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