French political scientist Pierre Rosanvallon was not describing the Bush administration when he wrote, "[They] speak like Tocqueville but continue to think like Robespierre." Had he been referring to the Bushies rather than to France's elites, he might have said that...
GENEVA - More than 100,000 refugees from the small Himalayan nation of Bhutan continue to languish in camps in Nepal, while neither talks between the governments of the two South Asian kingdoms nor the international community have come up with any plan to put an end...
A landmark reform plan prepared by 40 civil society groups from 15 Middle East and North African (MENA) countries for a recent G8 meeting in New York is at risk of "a false start," according to one of its signatories. The meeting to discuss the seven-point...
Thirteen colonies fought off one of the most powerful, expansive and brutal empires in the history of the world in the late 18th century, creating a new nation based on anti-imperial principles and the notion that people have a right to self-determination. For about a...
BANGKOK - By dismissing the country's prime minister in an unprecedented manner, Burma's military leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe has affirmed that the junta's hardliners will stop at nothing to retain their grip on power. Few Burma watchers expected Gen. Khin Nyunt's...
Before Operation Iraqi Freedom, one of the most compelling symbols of the depravity and danger of Saddam Hussein was the uncompleted Baghdad Metro. Saddam was believed to have launched the multi-billion-dollar subway project in 1983 to alleviate traffic congestion in...
What really is important is not what he said or why he said it, but the worldview that animates him. By now, everybody has had a go at analyzing the interview with Dov ("Dubby") Weisglass, Ariel Sharon's most intimate confidant. But there is precious little to...
BOGOTA - The Intercongregational Justice and Peace Commission in Colombia was recently told "watch what you write," in a message threatening that "something terrible" could happen. The anonymous message threatened a "major attack" that...
Elections in Afghanistan and Iraq may prove disastrous by increasing violence and extremism, according to studies of other post-conflict societies included in a book released Monday by United Nations University Press. If elections in volatile situations are ill-timed...
TEHRAN - A combination of light entertainment, talk shows and politics beamed into Iran by a dozen or so satellite stations set up by Iranian exiles in the United States is proving to be explosive in the Islamic country. Iranian hardliners have denounced foreign...
