I already posted on how the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in the Western Sahara (Minurso) is the only one of its kind to not have a human rights mandate. The conflict is over thirty years in the making and consistently hovers below the media radar screen. Perhaps there is not enough blood spilled […]
“Brazil’s economic rise has led it to pursue greater influence in international forums at the same time that it fosters cooperation among countries in the developing world with ‘south-south’ initiatives,” argues Stephanie Hanson of the Council on Foreign Relations. In a recent backgrounder, she details Brazil’s rise and its relations with the United States. Brazil […]
Patricia Kushlis at WhirledView has an excellent review of William P. Kiehl’s How Colleges Can Create International Communities. I won’t repeat the points made about the book (but make sure to read the review). But I would add that while it is heartening to see that educational and cultural affairs have been mentioned by both President Obama (especially […]
Speaking in Kenya, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said it is a “great regret” that the US is not a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague.
Yesterday I brought you the piece, The fine lines between porn and cyberspace, on virtual child porn and the gray areas that it has now created. However virtual child porn is not the only door opener to child sexual exploitation. With advancements and an increased access to technology, we have also an increased access to […]
USAID Reviews Role of For-Profit Contractors Earlier this year the US Agency for International Development (USAID) began an internal review of its longstanding practice of using for-profit consulting firms that sub-contract to non-profit organizations working with USAID (thereby skirting the regulation that does not allow for-profit contractors). USAID awards about $4 billion every year in federal […]
This is a rare glimpse into the life of North Korea. The report comes from journalist Lisa Ling, whose sister, Laura Ling, was recently released from prison there during a visit from former United States President Bill Clinton. Lisa Ling and her crew obtained access to the sealed country by following a Nepalese eye surgeon […]
Amidst what appears to be a confusion of evidence and a disregard for both the pressures faced by girls sold into marriage and the inherently dual victim-perpetrator status of children in conflict situations, Rania Ibrahim, a 16-year-old Iraqi teenage girl, has been sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for an attempted suicide […]
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy Former President Bill Clinton’s trip to North Korea has provided a foreign policy spectacle that has everyone talking. Of course, it wasn’t supposed to be about foreign policy, it was billed as a strictly humanitarian mission to gain the release of the two […]
…Africa’s second largest economy and a potential rising regional power. Nigeria, with about $215 billion in GDP last year, follows South Africa and leads Egypt in Africa in terms of the size of its economy, but lags both countries in wealth per head, with roughly $1350 of GDP per capita. Nigeria relies very heavily on […]
The lines around child porn are often tested, with those who do use very young looking 18+ girls, who’s looks they play with to seem even more innocent and child like, to avoid any legal ramifications while still benefiting from the massive industry that is fueled by pedophiles around the globe. The FBI’s cybercrime unit’s […]
The Russian paradox is that the country’s power rises as the price of energy resources increases, but its long-term economic prospects and geopolitical influence seem to rely on lower oil and gas prices. High prices destroy the incentive for necessary economic reforms. “Russia’s economy remains dominated by oil and gas, and its overall government policies […]
The past couple of days, there has been a frenzy of media coverage about the two jailed American journalists who were freed from North Korea. And rightly so. Rarely has such a dramatic set of circumstances come into play at the same time, then ended in a moral, political, and humanitarian coup. Yet the biggest […]
5-Aug-09 – The conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has seen a massive upsurge in sexual violence against men. By Lisa Gambone.
After a few weeks away, I thought this story would be a good re-entry to the world of Rising Powers. In America, a flailing economy and falling approval ratings for the President lead to an intricate campaign to reassure citizens of financial growth, long term stability and national robustness. President Obama holds a meeting with […]