Syria, storytelling, and all things between: a meta-commentary on ‘the...
Al-Akhbar English (AAE) is the English branch of a prominent Lebanese newspaper, Al-Akhbar. During the second week of February 2014, Al-Akhbar English published a six-part special series called,...
View ArticleRacism in Northern Ireland
British politics has for too long ignored hate in Northern Ireland.Anna Lo, Wikimedia/DaviMurphNorthern Ireland is always treated as a special case, and with some justification. We have suffered a...
View ArticleThe Cloud rains on all parades
A parking ticket leads our Sunday Comics author to wonder how much of our lives have migrated Up ThereThe Cloud and its inhabitants know where I live. My unconscious knowledge of this fact was...
View ArticleRoma integration and 'a normal way of living'
Roma integration in Europe has shifted to a right-wing definition of integration where the onus is being placed on the minorities to make the adjustments and accommodations deemed necessary for social...
View ArticleArbitrary detention, once again, in Thailand
If madness is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different outcome, the authors of Thailand’s twelfth coup since the absolute monarchy have yet to learn from Einstein’s aphorismYour name...
View ArticleThe securitisation of dissent and the spectre of Gezi
At the weekend police shot demonstrators in Istanbul, attempting to enter Taksim Square to mark the anniversary of the Gezi Park protests—another deadly battle in the struggle for rights and freedoms...
View ArticleDealing with the past: "There must never be a hierarchy of pain"
" I would like you to come with me to explore the past through the eyes of victims and survivors. It is difficult a very difficult place to get to and an even more difficult place to leave". Kathryn...
View Article“Desperate times call for desperate measures?”: the ‘Politics of anxiety’ and...
What are we meant to concludefrom the ‘rise of the far-right’? The narrative tells us that being objective, moderate and ‘technical’ rather than factionalist is what is needed in ‘times of anxiety’....
View ArticleQuo vadis, Europe?
Europeans, like most other inhabitants of the planet, are currently facing the crisis of ’politics as we know it’ - a state of “interregnum” – as the great Italian philosopher Antonio Gramsci described...
View ArticleItaly: back to the future?
PM Matteo Renzi triumphed over Beppe Grillo and Berlusconi in the last European elections. Does this reshuffling of Italian politics mean the country is back to a sort of normal?Italian PM Matteo...
View ArticleWomen’s voices in northern Nigeria: hearing the broader narratives
As the world's attention focuses on northern Nigeria with the abduction of schoolgirls from Chibok, Fatimah Kelleher explores the importance of understanding the voices and agency of northern Nigerian...
View ArticleWhat we owe Nigeria’s kidnapped schoolgirls
People worldwide are calling for action to bring back the kidnapped schoolgirls in Nigeria. But concern for the girls demands that we think carefully about the harmful consequences of proposed...
View ArticleAfghanistan: history repeats itself when ignored
The invading NATO forces, in an action allegedly aimed at the defeat of terrorism in a country which had no tradition of terrorist activities, appeared to act with no inkling of the lessons that could...
View ArticleCome and live in Russia!
The Russian government is running a scheme to encourage former Soviet citizens now living in other countries to resettle in Russia. But for many, its limitations outweigh its apparent...
View ArticlePrivatisation of governance: a multi-stakeholder slippery slope
A tight overlap between economic and political elites creates a massive push to shrink the public sector to accommodate private interests. This amounts to an abdication of state responsibility and a...
View ArticleCitizens are not stupid: looking at the European Elections from the outside in
Seen by an outsider, the European Elections actually looked more like a success for Europe and transnational democracy - not a failure. Let me tell you why.Seen by an outsider, the European Elections...
View ArticleThe British Army frontline: women and children first
We now face the prospect of 16 year old girls joining the army in combat roles.Flickr/isafmediaShortly after announcing it would be reviewing the ban on women in combat roles, the Ministry of Defence...
View ArticleHuman rights violations in immigration enforcement at the external borders...
Human rights violations in immigration enforcement at the external borders of the EU are almost a daily phenomenon. Yet, they have been treated as ‘exceptional’. What can we learn from looking at the...
View ArticleGlobal Preventive Security and its unbearable lightness
One now plays a part in one’s own protection, and is expected to understand that one is ultimately the only personal responsible. The institutions can only help one to strengthen one’s preparedness....
View ArticleGraphic novel: The United States vs Pvt Chelsea Manning
Clark Stoeckley's graphic account from inside the Chelsea Manning trial is released today, marking its first anniversary. We exclusively excerpt Chelsea Manning's testimony on her treatment in prison....
View Article