Czechs, Slovaks mark 50 years since Soviets crushed Prague SpringAugust 22, 2018Source: Journal du Cameroun / www.journalducameroun.com / By AFP / Czechs and Slovaks on Tuesday will mark 50 years since Soviet tanks crushed the “Prague Spring” democratic reform movement, while using the anniversary to point out similarities to the situation today. The burgeoning movement, led by Communist Party leader Alexander …
50 Years After Prague Spring, Lessons on Freedom (and a Broken Spirit)August 21, 2018Source: The New York Times / www.nytimes.com / By Marc Santora / PRAGUE — Could Soviet-style communism be reconciled with the dignity and freedom of the individual? In 1968, the question was put to the test when the leader of Czechoslovakia’s Communist Party, Alexander Dubcek, initiated a project of liberalization …
In 1968, Warsaw Pact troops suppressed the Prague SpringAugust 20, 2018Source: Taiwan News / www.taiwannews.com / By Deutsche Welle / Soviet tanks led the way as more than 200,000 Warsaw Pact troops marched into the Czechoslovak capital during the night of August 20, 1968, ending the Prague Spring at the behest of the rulers in Moscow. The number of occupying …
Lessons: We live in a PlutocracyJune 18, 2018Source: Livingston County News / www.thelcn.com / By Bill Cook / Readers know that it is hard to find a more zealous “small d” democrat than I. I celebrate democracy’s many virtues and try to suggest ways to deal with inherent problems. Each year I attend a conference founded by …
Czechs protest against communist party’s role in govtJune 18, 2018Source: Yahoo / www.yahoo.com / By AFP / Prague (AFP) – Thousands of Czechs protested across the EU country on Tuesday against the communist party as it was poised to play a role in government, albeit an informal one, for the first time since communism fell in 1989. The …
Israeli ex-ambassador honoured for building bridges between Poles and JewsJune 18, 2018Source: Radio Poland / www.thenews.pl / Israeli politician Shevah Weiss, a former ambassador in Warsaw, has received an award for building bridges between Poles and Jews. The Jan Nowak-Jeziorański Memorial Award honours Weiss for his ability to talk about the most difficult issues that affect Poles and Jews. Nowak-Jeziorański was …
The modern road to totalitarianismJune 4, 2018Source: The Tribune / www.tribuneindia.com / By Shelley Walia / A new era of violent passion overwhelms the contemporary world. The Holocaust, the mountains of literature on Nazism, are subjected to obliviousness impelling the return of economic and political fascism. It is thriving not only in autocratic nations but in …
Philip Roth: Portnoy’s Complaint and American Pastoral author dies at 85May 27, 2018Source: The Guardian / www.theguardian.com / Chronicler of American politics, Jewishness and male sexual desire was widely regarded as one of greatest novelists of the 20th century The novelist Philip Roth, who explored America through the contradictions of his own character for more than six decades, died on Tuesday aged …
Belfast Agreement shows it is possible to achieve great good in politicsMay 19, 2018Source: The Irish Times / www.theirishtimes.com / By Path Leahy / Pat Leahy: politics has been described as a combination of high purpose and low cunning It is one of the greatest political achievements that many of us will ever see, and there are many lessons to take from the …
In pictures: From inmate to president: leaders who served timeMay 18, 2018Source: ENCA / www.enca.com / By AFP / KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Anwar Ibrahim’s release from a Malaysian jail on Wednesday paves the way for him to become prime minister, a path from prison to power that has been trodden by some of the most famous leaders of the last …
The dream he hadMay 16, 2018Source: The Hindu / www.thehindu.com / Ramin Jahanbegloo / Fifty years after his assassination, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s ‘revolution of values’ resonates just as clearly We commonly say that historical figures are best known for their deeds. What manner of man was Martin Luther King, Jr.? To answer this question, …
Working with Students to Reclaim the Revolutionary Roots of Czech TheatreMay 16, 2018Source: HowlRound / www.howlround.com / By Hannah Sachs / “Now let’s create an image of exclusion,” I explained to the classroom of young Czech teens. Silently, they arranged themselves into a landscape of frozen poses, working together to create a tableau based on their personal understanding of the word. Some …
A revolution of values: Freedom, responsibility, and courage in the Armenian Velvet RevolutionMay 7, 2018Source: The London School of Economics and Political Science / www.lse.ac.uk / Mass protests in Armenia, which began in April and led to the resignation of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, have been dubbed a ‘Velvet Revolution’. Armine Ishkanian explains that this revolution has been rooted in the values of Armenian …
Ombudsman nominates Georgian activist in occupied Akhalgori for UN and Vaclav Havel PrizesMay 4, 2018Source: Agenda.ge / www.agenda.ge / The Georgian Public Defender Nino Lomjaria has nominated Tamar Mearakishvili, a Georgian activist based in the country’s occupied Akhalgori area, for the United Nations Human Rights Prize and Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize for her “outstanding contribution to defending the rights of conflict-affected population”. Lomjaria …
Czechs, Slovaks mark 50 years since Soviets crushed Prague Spring August 22, 2018 Source: Journal du Cameroun / www.journalducameroun.com / By AFP / Czechs and Slovaks on Tuesday will mark 50 years since Soviet tanks crushed the “Prague Spring” democratic reform movement, while using the anniversary to point out similarities to the situation today. The burgeoning movement, led by Communist Party leader Alexander …
50 Years After Prague Spring, Lessons on Freedom (and a Broken Spirit) August 21, 2018 Source: The New York Times / www.nytimes.com / By Marc Santora / PRAGUE — Could Soviet-style communism be reconciled with the dignity and freedom of the individual? In 1968, the question was put to the test when the leader of Czechoslovakia’s Communist Party, Alexander Dubcek, initiated a project of liberalization …
In 1968, Warsaw Pact troops suppressed the Prague Spring August 20, 2018 Source: Taiwan News / www.taiwannews.com / By Deutsche Welle / Soviet tanks led the way as more than 200,000 Warsaw Pact troops marched into the Czechoslovak capital during the night of August 20, 1968, ending the Prague Spring at the behest of the rulers in Moscow. The number of occupying …
Lessons: We live in a Plutocracy June 18, 2018 Source: Livingston County News / www.thelcn.com / By Bill Cook / Readers know that it is hard to find a more zealous “small d” democrat than I. I celebrate democracy’s many virtues and try to suggest ways to deal with inherent problems. Each year I attend a conference founded by …
Czechs protest against communist party’s role in govt June 18, 2018 Source: Yahoo / www.yahoo.com / By AFP / Prague (AFP) – Thousands of Czechs protested across the EU country on Tuesday against the communist party as it was poised to play a role in government, albeit an informal one, for the first time since communism fell in 1989. The …
Israeli ex-ambassador honoured for building bridges between Poles and Jews June 18, 2018 Source: Radio Poland / www.thenews.pl / Israeli politician Shevah Weiss, a former ambassador in Warsaw, has received an award for building bridges between Poles and Jews. The Jan Nowak-Jeziorański Memorial Award honours Weiss for his ability to talk about the most difficult issues that affect Poles and Jews. Nowak-Jeziorański was …
The modern road to totalitarianism June 4, 2018 Source: The Tribune / www.tribuneindia.com / By Shelley Walia / A new era of violent passion overwhelms the contemporary world. The Holocaust, the mountains of literature on Nazism, are subjected to obliviousness impelling the return of economic and political fascism. It is thriving not only in autocratic nations but in …
Philip Roth: Portnoy’s Complaint and American Pastoral author dies at 85 May 27, 2018 Source: The Guardian / www.theguardian.com / Chronicler of American politics, Jewishness and male sexual desire was widely regarded as one of greatest novelists of the 20th century The novelist Philip Roth, who explored America through the contradictions of his own character for more than six decades, died on Tuesday aged …
Former US ambassador to Prague, William Luers, on what it was like to serve in Communist Czechoslovakia May 19, 2018 Source: Radio Praha / www.radio.cz / By Clare Profous / Former US ambassador to Czechoslovakia William Luers and his wife Wendy recently visited Prague and gave a talk at the American Centre about what it was like to be posted in Communist Czechoslovakia in the 1980s, how they were able …
Belfast Agreement shows it is possible to achieve great good in politics May 19, 2018 Source: The Irish Times / www.theirishtimes.com / By Path Leahy / Pat Leahy: politics has been described as a combination of high purpose and low cunning It is one of the greatest political achievements that many of us will ever see, and there are many lessons to take from the …
In pictures: From inmate to president: leaders who served time May 18, 2018 Source: ENCA / www.enca.com / By AFP / KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Anwar Ibrahim’s release from a Malaysian jail on Wednesday paves the way for him to become prime minister, a path from prison to power that has been trodden by some of the most famous leaders of the last …
The dream he had May 16, 2018 Source: The Hindu / www.thehindu.com / Ramin Jahanbegloo / Fifty years after his assassination, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s ‘revolution of values’ resonates just as clearly We commonly say that historical figures are best known for their deeds. What manner of man was Martin Luther King, Jr.? To answer this question, …
Working with Students to Reclaim the Revolutionary Roots of Czech Theatre May 16, 2018 Source: HowlRound / www.howlround.com / By Hannah Sachs / “Now let’s create an image of exclusion,” I explained to the classroom of young Czech teens. Silently, they arranged themselves into a landscape of frozen poses, working together to create a tableau based on their personal understanding of the word. Some …
A revolution of values: Freedom, responsibility, and courage in the Armenian Velvet Revolution May 7, 2018 Source: The London School of Economics and Political Science / www.lse.ac.uk / Mass protests in Armenia, which began in April and led to the resignation of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, have been dubbed a ‘Velvet Revolution’. Armine Ishkanian explains that this revolution has been rooted in the values of Armenian …
Ombudsman nominates Georgian activist in occupied Akhalgori for UN and Vaclav Havel Prizes May 4, 2018 Source: Agenda.ge / www.agenda.ge / The Georgian Public Defender Nino Lomjaria has nominated Tamar Mearakishvili, a Georgian activist based in the country’s occupied Akhalgori area, for the United Nations Human Rights Prize and Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize for her “outstanding contribution to defending the rights of conflict-affected population”. Lomjaria …