Winds of Racial Change in Brazil
The appointment of Judge Joaquim Barbosa, seen as a popular hero because of his performance in one of Brazil’s highest-profile corruption cases, as the first black president of the country’s Supreme...
View ArticleFarm Holds Out Hope for Peace and Development in DR Congo
Dairy cattle are again grazing on the rolling green hills of North Kivu province, in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Twenty years ago, an explosion of ethnic violence tore through this...
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U.S. President Obama Wins Second Term in Close Contest
U.S. President Barack Obama won a second term Tuesday night with a majority of the electoral vote. He appeared assured of surpassing his Republican challenger, Governor Mitt Romney, in the national...
View ArticleKeeping the Veil on Women’s Electoral Participation
Cameroon’s new biometric registration of voters may end up disenfranchising many potential voters, especially women in the country’s predominantly Muslim north where cultural practices may prevent them...
View ArticleFor Champions of Degrowth, Less Is Much More
The concept of degrowth is not a very comfortable one in overdeveloped countries such as the United States. But with the planet’s resources stretched to the limit, many argue that an action plan is...
View ArticleDespite Poverty Pacific Islands Score on Child Mortality
The Pacific Islands are making steady progress on reducing child mortality, but most are struggling to eradicate poverty and generate employment for young and rapidly growing populations. With three...
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Brazil’s Mensalao Trial: Blow to Corruption or Political Ploy?
Regarded by the mainstream media and opposition in Brazil as a landmark case in the fight against corruption, the Supreme Court trial of politicians and business leaders could have an exemplary effect...
View ArticleVictories for Marijuana Legalisation, Same-Sex Marriage at U.S. Polls
In addition to the victories of the Democratic Party in retaining the presidency and the U.S. Senate, and of the Republican Party in retaining the U.S. House, there were major issue-related victories...
View ArticleU.S. Voters Punish Republicans for “Reckless Obstruction”
Despite a bitterly and closely fought presidential campaign fuelled by record financial backing, analysts sifting through Tuesday’s national election results here are forecasting a period of...
View ArticleChristian Right’s Influence Shaken by U.S. Election
For decades, right-leaning white Christian evangelicals, currently at least 25 percent of the U.S. electorate, have been a significant and influential voting demographic. During Tuesday’s highly...
View ArticleBolder Obama on Middle East, Climate in Second Term?
With President Barack Obama winning re-election, foreign policy analysts here are pondering whether his victory will translate into major changes from the rather cautious approach he followed overseas...
View ArticleBrazil Emerging as Key Player at U.N.
When a U.N. member state agrees to hold an international conference in its capital, the host country is not only offered the privilege of chairing the mega meeting but also given pride of place as the...
View ArticleBillions in Subsidies Prop up Unsustainable Overfishing
Calls are mounting for the world’s big fishing powers to stop subsidising international fleets that use destructive methods like bottom trawling in foreign coastal waters, drastically reducing the...
View ArticleNDN Not the Cash Cow Local Central Asian Leaders Expected
U.S. officials are happy with a programme that helps steer Pentagon contracts to local businesses in Central Asia. But Central Asian governments are grousing that they aren’t making enough of a profit...
View ArticleNew Era Augurs More of the Same for Impoverished Maya People
The Maya Indians of Central America and Mexico will have little to celebrate when the current era comes to an end on Dec. 21. The extreme poverty and marginalisation they face contrast sharply with the...
View ArticleChina Opens Communist Party Congress*
China’s ruling Communist Party has launched its national congress, a pivotal event that ushers in a new set of top leaders for the next decade. More than 2,200 delegates gathered at Beijing’s Great...
View ArticleOP-ED: Unfinished Business Awaits Obama’s Second Term
Several critical issues of unfinished business in the Middle East face President Barack Obama as he begins his second term. Washington must become more engaged come January because these issues will...
View ArticleImmigration Reform May Be Big Winner in U.S. Elections
In the aftermath of a surprisingly lopsided victory for President Barack Obama’s Democratic Party and for progressive causes more broadly, one of the key discussions taking place here is over the...
View ArticleOP-ED: Hurricane Sandy Says, “Welcome to the New Normal”
I am aware that my arrival last week helped re-elect U.S. President Barack Obama. Superstorms like me don’t play politics, but it should be clear by now that your refusal to tackle global warming has...
View ArticleLegalisation in U.S. States May Prompt Changes in Mexico’s Anti-Drug Policy
The legalisation of small amounts of marijuana for recreational use, which will allow the drug to be taxed and regulated, in two U.S. states will prompt debate on anti-drug policies in Mexico as well,...
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