Republished
Bangladesh’s false impression of women’s empowerment
Despite a rather glowing report from the WEF, a sense of impunity has put women in the country more at risk When Myanmar in 2017 launched…
Republished
The other pandemic
Spanish politics is as destructive as the coronavirus. There will one day be a vaccine against the latter, but there seems to be no remedy for…
Situation update
Situation Update on COVID-19, 11 October, 2020
Analysis
Intra-Afghan Negotiations – The Long Walk to Peace
It finally happened on a Saturday. On September 12 2020, as the world was taking a day off, another round of peace negotiations had just been…
Republished
How Trump damaged science — and why it could take decades to recover
The US president’s actions have exacerbated the pandemic that has killed more than 200,000 people in the United States, rolled back environmental and public-health regulations and…
Situation update
Situation Update on COVID-19, 10 October, 2020
Analysis
Coronavirus: thresholds for effective herd immunity could be lower than predicted – here’s why
Basic models for COVID-19 suggest herd immunity is achieved when 60% of people are immune. This is because in a population where everyone is susceptible to…
Analysis
Fixing Democracy: The Election Security Crisis and Solutions for Mending It
The 2000 presidential election debacle in Florida led to the widespread adoption of electronic voting machines in the United States. Yet these machines have proven to…
Republished
5 Years On, Russia’s Syria Intervention Poses More Questions Than Answers
Russia joined the fighting in Syria under the pretext of preventing the spread of terrorism on its own territory. The result, however, is that a whole…
Republished
No good or safe choices at Myanmar’s election
A Covid-19 outbreak and voter apathy guarantee a low turnout and weaker democratic mandate for the winner of Nov 8 polls Myanmar is heading to polls…
Situation update
Situation Update on COVID-19, 09 October, 2020
Republished
A Boycott of the 2022 Beijing Olympics Would Work
There is a massive overlap between Western liberal democracies and medal contenders in the Winter Games – enough to gut Beijing’s Olympic dreams. As China’s dismal…