November 3, 2012
Category: Civil Liberties, Civil Society, Egypt, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Islamist movements, Muslim Brotherhood, NGOs, Political Islam, Protests, Reform, US foreign policy, Women
Iranian Activists Awarded Human Rights Prize
The European Union awarded its Sakharov Prize for Human Rights and Freedom of Thought to two Iranian activists on October 26. Human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh and filmmaker Jafar Panahi, both currently imprisoned by the Iranian regime, were awarded the ...
November 1, 2012
Category: Civil Liberties, EU, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, Iran, Journalism, Legislation, NGOs, Qatar, Reform, Women
POMED Notes – Women After the Arab Awakening: Making Change
On Thursday (10/25), The Brookings Institution co-hosted a panel discussion with Vital Voices Global Partnership and Project on Middle East Democracy entitled “Women After the Arab Awakening.” The panel included Souad Slaoui, of the Isis Center in Morocco; Randa Naffa, of Sadaqa in Jordan; Marianne Ibrahim, of al-Gisr Center for Development in Egypt; and Lina Ahmad, of the Lebanese League for Women in Business. Tamara Cofman Wittes, Director of the Saban Center for Middle ...
October 28, 2012
Category: Civil Society, Event Notes, Jordan, Lebanon, Legislation, Morocco, NGOs, Women
Broadening U.S. Engagement With the Middle East
Stephen McInerney, Executive Director of the Project on Middle East Democracy, wrote a recent article in the Huffington Post encouraging the "United States to embrace the historic changes in the by taking action to support democratic transitions ...
October 20, 2012
Category: Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Egypt, Featured, Human Rights, Islamist movements, Libya, Muslim Brotherhood, NGOs, Political transition, Tunisia, US foreign policy
Continuing Challenges to Morsi’s Leadership
Mohammed Morsi continues to face criticism regarding his time in office. A Cairo based human rights group, Nadim Center, reported that the Egyptian president has failed to meet his promise of reducing abuses by security forces. The group reports that ...
October 15, 2012
Category: Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Islamist movements, Muslim Brotherhood, NGOs, Political transition, Protests, Reform, Secularism
Analyst Examines Differences among Arab Uprisings
In an op-ed, professor Mark LeVine describes why democratic transitions have been so drastically different across the Middle East. He argued that the initial movement in Syria was not as successful as Egypt or Tunisia due in part to a ...
October 10, 2012
Category: Bahrain, Civil Society, Egypt, Featured, Gulf, Human Rights, Libya, NGOs, Political transition, Protests, Reform, Syria, Tunisia, UN Security Council
POMED Notes: The Economics of the Arab Spring
On Thursday, the Atlantic Councils’ Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East hosted a roundtable discussion titled “The Economics of the Arab Spring: Populism or Reform?” The discussion included Dr. Mohsin Khan, Senior Fellow at the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, Atlantic Council, Dr. Zubair Iqbal, Adjunct Scholar at the Middle East Institute, and Michele Dunne, Director of the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, who led ...
Bahraini Medics’ Appeal Rejected Final Time
The appeal of nine Bahraini medics who treated victims of government crackdowns was rejected for the final time, and many of the sentences stem from "participating in illegal demonstrations." The sentences range from one month to five years. A number ...
October 1, 2012
Category: Bahrain, Civil Liberties, Democracy Promotion, Featured, Freedom, Hezbollah, Human Rights, NGOs, Protests, Reform, UN Human Rights Council, Uncategorized, United Nations, Youth
September 28, 2012
Category: Bahrain, Civil Liberties, Diplomacy, Featured, Freedom, Gulf, Human Rights, Iran, Islam and Democracy, Kuwait, NGOs, Oman, Political transition, Protests, Qatar, Reform, Saudi Arabia, UAE, US foreign policy
POMED Notes: “Road Bumps in Tunisia: Understanding Emerging Tensions”
On Friday, June 29, 2012, POMED and the New America Foundation hosted an event entitled “Road Bumps in Tunisia: Understanding Emerging Tensions.” The event examined new rifts in Tunisian society and politics, the constitution-writing process, and civil society activity, among other key issues. The panel featured: Amine Ghali, Program Director, Al Kawakibi Democracy Transition Center; Alexis Arieff, Africa Analyst, Congressional Research Service; Tamara Wittes, Director, Saban Center for Middle East ...
July 17, 2012
Category: Event Notes, Events, Foreign Aid, Human Rights, NGOs, Reform, Tunisia, US foreign policy
POMED Notes: “Tunisia in Transition: What Role for the International Community?”
On Sunday, July 8, 2012, POMED and the Heinrich Böll Foundation, in partnership with the Tunisian organization Afkar, held a one-day conference in Tunis entitled “Tunisia in Transition: What Role for the International Community?” The event examined critical issues surrounding U.S. and European assistance and policy approaches to support democracy and governance programs in Tunisia, and also explored some of the broader socio-economic challenges facing the country today. As Tunisians focus ...
July 12, 2012
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, EU, Event Notes, Foreign Aid, NGOs, Tunisia
U.N. to Sanction Those Opposing Yemen’s Transition
The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved last week's resolution threatening non-military sanctions against any who would undermine Yemen's transition to democracy. Despite the efforts of newly elected President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, the government must confront many challenges in its ...
Egyptians Respond to Verdicts, NGOs Still Under Scrutiny
The Associated Press reported Sunday on the scope of U.S. democracy aid to Egypt during the past year. Last October several Egyptians resigned from their positions with the International Republican Institute in protest of what they called undemocratic practices, such ...
Seventeen NGOs Criticize Iran’s Personal Freedoms Restrictions
Seventeen human rights and student organizations have called for Iran to uphold the right to education, expressing "deep concern for the alarming state of academic freedom" in the country. A joint statement released by the NGOs was critical of violations ...
Universal Periodic Review of Tunisia
The United Nations High Commission for Human Rights held a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on Tunisia on May 22. A delegation from Tunisia presented the following as positive achievements; the revolution of last year has led to a democratic transition, the new government has taken several measures to safeguard civil society, and efforts have been made to prevent violence against women. Delegations in the hearing also noted other positive changes, ...
Summary and Highlights of the FY13 House State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill
On Thursday (5/17), the House Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year 2013 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. According to a committee press release, the bill totals $40.1 billion in regular discretionary funding, which is $2 billion or 5 ...
May 21, 2012
Category: Bahrain, Civil Society, Congress, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Featured, Foreign Aid, Human Rights, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Legislation, Libya, Morocco, NGOs, Oman, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, UN Human Rights Council, US foreign policy, Women, Yemen
POMED Notes: “Threats to Civil Society and Human Rights Defenders Worldwide – Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Hearing”
On Thursday, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission held a hearing on threats and restrictions faced by human rights defenders and civil society. Congressman James McGovern (D-MA) chaired the hearing. Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN) was also present. Panel one featured Michael Posner, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the State Department, Donald Steinberg, Deputy Administrator at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Tomicah Tilleman, ...
May 20, 2012
Category: Bahrain, Civil Society, Committee Meetings, Congressional Hearing Notes (House), Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Human Rights, NGOs, US foreign policy
The Impact of Egyptian Presidential Polls
In an Ahram Online article, Yasmine Wali discusses the impact of opinion polls on the presidential race. “These polls can manipulate undecided voters, for example, dictating their political responsiveness by portraying the same group of candidates as ‘frontrunners’ at the expense of others,” says Said Sadek, a political scientist at the American University in Cairo. The article discusses, as an example, a poll by the Cabinet’s Information and Decision Support Centre, which ...
POMED Notes: “The Civil Insurgents: The Arab Uprisings and Civil Society”
On Tuesday, the new America Foundation hosted a conference titled “The Civil Insurgents: The Arab Uprisings and Civil Society.” The discussion was focused on the role of civil society in the Arab Spring and in the future of the Arab states. The conference was moderated by Leila Hilal, co-director of the New America Foundation Middle East Task Force. The panelists were Abulnabi Hasan Alkery, President of the Bahrain Transparency Society, ...
May 15, 2012
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Elections, EU, Event Notes, Foreign Aid, Gulf, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Israel, NGOs, Palestine, POMED, US foreign policy