Category: Daniel Lansberg-Rodriguez
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Courting Trouble in Pakistan: the Next Chapter
The tug-of-war between the Supreme Court of Pakistan and that country’s executive continues. In 2007 Pervez Musharraf sacked the court’s chief justice and two associate justices for openly opposing the erstwhile dictator’s seizure of emergency powers. Within hours of the dismissal throngs of lawyers had taken to the streets in protest, exacerbating the crisis and…
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Feeble Democracy in Ukraine
A classic episode of the American television comedy Seinfeld finds two of the characters, Kramer and Newman, on a subway car playing the board game RISK. Kramer taunts his opponent for his losing position to which the latter responds “I’m not beaten yet.
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A Culture of Impunity in Niger?
Last week, the interim government of Niger announced a proposed amnesty for the country’s ruling junta in its new draft constitution. State radio channels hailed the action as the best possible outcome for the majority of “social and political forces.” Although the text itself is still being finalized by the constitutional consultative council, the gist…
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Serving up Constitutional Kaldreta in the Philippines
So you are the President. For five or eight or twelve years now thing have been humming along nicely and the people love/fear you (circle one). Then you see it. Tiny at first but becoming steadily larger – like an iceberg looming over your prow… term limits.
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Embattled Government of Kyrgyzstan seeks referendum for June 27
In early April 2010 bloody riots rocked the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek in response to high utility costs and brutal levels of perceived corruption. For nearly a week, thousands of protesters took to the streets in a bloody clash which reportedly killed at least eighty people and wounded nearly 500 more.