NED Democracy


FEBRUARY 25
2011
National Endowment for Democracy

In This Issue
Top Stories
Democracy Stories
News & Events

Useful Links


NED Grants
NED Events
Democracy Digest
Journal of Democracy
International Forum for Democratic Studies
Fellowship Programs
Democracy Resource Center
Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA)
World Movement for Democracy
Employment

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National Endowment for Democracy
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Washington, DC 20004
info@ned.org

Top Stories
• Taking big risks for democracy in Yemen more
• Transition in Tunisia and Egypt: options & obstacles more 
• CIMA report: Social Media in the Arab World more
• Politico: Frost, Weber on Reagan's Democratic Legacy more 
Democracy Spotlight
Tawakkol KarmanTaking big risks for democracy in Yemen
In Yemen, Tawakkol Karman, a 32-year-old mother of three and head of NED grantee Women Journalists Without Chains, is helping to shatter conservative Yemeni perceptions of women, while emboldening a new generation of Yemenis to demand a voice in the public square, She was recently profiled on page one of The Washington Postmore

News & Events

Avenue Bouguiba, Tunis. Photo by cjb22, Flickr, Creative Commons
Transition in Tunisia & Egypt: options and obstacles
On Jan. 31, the International Forum for Democratic Studies and Georgetown University convened democracy assistance practitioners and leading experts to discuss Tunisian political reform, democratic transitions, and electoral and constitutional design. more
  
A similar forum was convened Feb. 11 to discuss Egyptian political reform, political transitions, and electoral and constitutional design. Each meeting resulted in the publication of a briefing note, available on the NED website. more
  

Social Media in the Arab WorldNew CIMA Publication 

Social Media in the Arab World: Leading Up to the Uprisings of 2011, by Jeffrey Ghannam. more  
    
"In the Middle East, this is not a Facebook Revolution," also by Jeffrey Ghannam in The Washington Post (Feb. 18, 2011). more 
  
"Reagan's Crucial Democratic Legacy" in Politico
NED Board Members Reps. Martin Frost and Vin Weber write in Politico about President Reagan's role in launching the National Endowment for Democracy. more
 
NED President Carl Gershman discussed "Reagan and the Global Democratic Movement," at a UVA Miller Center conference. more
   
Carl Gershman (left) and Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius Azubalis.Lithuania Honored 

NED President Carl Gershman was joined by Aung San Suu Kyi, NSC Senior Director Michael McFaul, Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner and the chief of staff to the Speaker of the House Barry Jackson in paying tribute to Lithuania for its contributions to fostering democracy around the worldmore

  
North Korea
"Technology Piercing North Korea's News Veil," in The Washington Times (Feb. 16, 2011), features NED grantees Open Radio for North Korea and North Korea Reform Radio. more
  
Grantees Under Threat: Thailand, Uganda, DRC
Chiranuch Premchaiporn, executive director of NED grantee Prachatai, is on trial for allegedly violating Thailand's draconian Computer Crime Act. Prachatai, a Thai- and English-language daily online newspaper, provides independent news reporting and analysis. Premchaiporn potentially faces up to 82 years in jail. more
  
NED grantee FAPAD has become the target of intimidation as it tries to expose governmental corruption in Uganda. more
  
ASADHO is a NED granteeActivists with NED grantee Association Africaine de Defense des Droits de l'Homme have been receiving death threats as they try to end the culture of political intimidation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. more
  
Russia 
On Jan. 31, Ludmilla Alexeyeva, head of the NED grantee Moscow Helsinki Group, led the latest protest in Moscow highlighting Article 31 of Russia's constitution, which guarantees freedom of assembly. more
  
HRIC Launches a New Year CampaignChina 
NED grantee Human Rights in China (HIRC) is celebrating the Chinese New Year by sending messages of support to activists and rights defenders imprisoned in China. more
  
Sudan 
"A Victory for Peace and Independence?" by Dave Peterson, NED director of Africa programs, writes about Sudan for Think Africa Press. more
  
NED in the News 
George Will, Norm Ornstein, Anne Applebaum and Christiane Amanpour have all been talking about NED. more
 
CIPE Editorial Cartoon CompetitionCIPE Editorial Cartoon Competition 
The Center for International Private Enterprise is sponsoring an editorial cartoon competition. Categories are: Democracy, Corruption, and Gender Equity. Deadline is April 17, 2011. more    

 

Upcoming and Recent Events
March 1, 2011, 8:30-11:00am: Democracy, Dissent and Digital Media in the Arab World, at the Rayburn Building, Room B-369,  hosted by Senator Richard Lugar, Rep. Adam Schiff and Rep. Mike Pence. more
  
Feb. 24, 2011, 1:00-3:00pm: Liberia: Elections, Corruption, Justice and the Role of the International Community, at NED, featuring J. Aloysius Toe and NED Senior Program Director Dave Peterson. more
  
Feb. 23, 2011, 12:00-2:00pm: A Not-So-Rosy Result: Georgia Seven Years after the Rose Revolution, at NED, featuring Reagan-Fascell Fellow Dr. Levan Berdzenishvili and NED Program Director Dr. Miriam Lanskoy. more
    
Video of other recent events available online include Keeping Democratic Hopes Alive in Russia and Ukraine and Bringing Human Rights Home: The Application of the European Convention in Russian Courtsmore