The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question: How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question: How do we make democracy work for the poor?
M K Bhadrakumar -
The thesis was just about gaining ground that the bitter legacy of the Arab spring is going to be the reawakening of the rough beast of sectarianism in the Muslim Middle East. Sectarian strife, it was prophesied, would lead to a Sunni-Shi'ite confrontation involving Saudi Arabia and Iran.
That specter helped deflect attention momentarily from the existential threat posed by the Arab spring to the authoritarian regimes of the Middle East. It also helped the United States to distract the...
Greg Grandin -
Tensions over Middle East policy are increasing, despite Barack Obama's recent visit to Latin America
At some point in the run-up to Barack Obama’s just concluded tour of Latin America, which included stops in Brazil, Chile, and El Salvador, the US press decided that coverage of the trip would focus on expected friendly meeting with Dilma Rousseff, Brazil's recently inaugurated president.
The Washington Post, the New York Times, and National Public Radio, along with a host of...
Massive protests in Egypt continue for more than a week as tens of thousands pack into Tahrir Square in Cairo. Protesters are vowing to stay in the streets until President Hosni Mubarak resigns. A "million man march" is being organized for Tuesday, 1 February 2011. Egyptian born, Democracy Now! senior producer Sharif Abdel Kouddous, has returned to Cairo to report on events from the ground.
Watch the clip above for an interview with Kouddous and find a transcript of the...
Inspired by the mass protests that brought down the Tunisian President Zine El Ben Ali, tens of thousands of Egyptians joined in street protests against rising food prices, joblessness and calling for an end to 30 years of emergency law and President Hosni Mubarak's rule, on 25 January 2011.
According to Al Jazeera, one police officer in Cairo and two civilians died amidst the rallies.
On the same day as the nationwide protests, US Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, reiterated her...
For the past month, Tunisia has been gripped by a wave of protests over unemployment, high food prices and government repression. Protests erupted in mid-December in the western region of the country, when a university graduate, Mohamed Bouazizi, unable to find employment set himself alight following police harassment for selling vegetables on the streets.
The protests were largely organised by young people using internet social networking sites and spread quickly throughout the...
Saif Shahin -
America's failure to talk peace is undercutting its influence in the Middle East. It has cleared the way for proactive nations like Turkey and Qatar, who want a quieter neighborhood to push their economic growth, to step in and broker deals such as the recent Iranian nuclear fuel swap and the Lebanese accord of 2008. Continued U.S. intransigence may lead them to try and sort out issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well.
The United States chooses to be unconvinced by the...
