In The News

Fundamental Failures

Merle Lipton July 23, 2008
South Africa confronts many struggles: Unemployment is high, crime has increased dramatically, and the government fails to provide even the most basic security for its citizens. In terms of infrastructure, power failures are common and supply problems are foreseen in other critical areas such as water. Such problems have impacts on the entire region. For example, the African National Congress...

In EU, Hope Dims for Iraqi Refugees

Mariah Blake April 24, 2008
The US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq and the subsequent insurgency have produced an estimated 4.7 million refugees. One Swedish town alone, Södertälje near Stockholm, has accepted about 6,000 asylum seekers in the last five years – more than the entire United States. In all, Sweden – which had no role in the war – has accepted 49,000 people who met the conditions required by the European Union’s...

A Bad Idea Is About to Deploy in Darfur

Julie Flint December 19, 2007
As reports of atrocities pour out of the Darfur region, activists have great expectations for a peacekeeping force led by the United Nations. But author Julie Flint, writing for the Daily Star in Lebanon, questions whether a small peacekeeping force, with minimal equipment, can end the violence. The numbers are staggering: The UN force numbers about 26,000, expected to assist 2.5 million refugees...

A World of People on the Move

Antonio Guterres December 3, 2007
No community or country can control the human urge to improve one’s situation. The 21st century will become the century of migration, suggests Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner of Refugees. People have long had many reasons for migrating from a birthplace to another part of the world – and the century will undoubtedly deliver more: work opportunities, war, climate change, natural disasters....

Exploiting Thailand’s Burmese Refugees

Jürgen Kremb November 12, 2007
The recent pro-democracy protests in Myanmar’s major cities overshadow the ongoing civil war raging near the border. Forcible conscription and the devastation of war have prompted an influx of refugees into neighboring Thailand. These illegal immigrants face formidable challenges, including corrupt police, unemployment and organized crime. Because of their illegal status, they cannot secure work...

Muslims and the Tale of Two Continents

Shada Islam September 14, 2007
Ever since the 9/11 attacks, Islamic extremists have chosen the US as the target of their ire. But in the six years since 9/11, actual attacks planned on US soil are few in number, with more plotters emerging in Europe. Shada Islam, journalist and policy analyst based in Brussels, suggests that Muslim immigrants in Europe and US both share frustration about Western prejudices and...

Wars That Defy Categorization

Dilip Hiro September 6, 2007
Some events have background stories that encompass centuries of history, offering immense complexity. Such is the case with the Iranian Revolution of 1979, the September 11 attacks of 2001 and the ongoing war in Iraq, suggests author Dilip Hiro. Analysts of the West underestimate how resentment and religion motivate people to reject democracy, reform or stability, acting in ways that may go...