Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
First, the current landscape for human rights is grim. Democracy continues to backslide around the world – Freedom House’s 2023 report notes 17 consecutive years of democratic decline.
Moreover, in its emphasis on “human fraternity,” the resolution is emblematic of a broader push among some autocratic states to reframe universal human rights frameworks in ways that place greater emphasis on state sovereignty and cultural and religious traditions.
The vast majority of Guatemalans think the country is on the wrong track, but elections are unlikely to lead to improvements.
India’s prime minister is being welcomed warmly in Washington despite human rights issues.
Yet as BRICS approaches its 15th summit in Johannesburg this August, the grouping is experiencing an unprecedented disagreement over enlargement. The outcome will be a test of BRICS identity in the face of rising Chinese influence.
Alarmed by the faltering state of American democracy, the philanthropic world is divided between those focused on reducing polarization and those embracing adversarial advocacy.
More political leaders—both left- and right-leaning—have used populist strategies in the past five years than at any time since the 1930s. That is bad news for countries’ economies and businesses.
This new reality is a good occasion to look back at the neoliberal agenda and consider which parts of it were actually valid and were too readily discarded, and which aspects of its critique remain on target.
Despite some recent democratic gains, it is too early to declare that the global democratic recession is over. Overcoming the deep roots of democracy’s global woes will require sustained efforts by the United States and many other democracies to address a myriad of continuing challenges
Rather than imposing a vision about the future of South America, Brazil’s president can gently try to steer debates and hope that the meeting on May 30 is the return of a permanent dialogue among South American leaders.