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Contents
1. News and Announcements
2. New Publications and Recent Events by NDRI Members
   2.1 Africa
   2.2 Asia and the Pacific
   2.3 Europe
   2.4 Latin America
   2.5 Middle East
   2.6 Russia and the Former Soviet Union
   2.7 United States and Canada

1. NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

2. New Publications and Recent Events by NDRI Members

Africa

Asia and the Pacific

On December 11-13, 2007, the Centre for Democratic Institutions (CDI, Australia) held its 9th annual Pacific Parliamentary Dialogue on “The Role of Parliament in Managing Conflict” in Papua New Guinea. The event brought together parliamentarians from around the region to “explore the ways to address contentious issues in conflict-affected societies and thereby strengthen and enhance the governance of Pacific Island Countries. More information about the Dialogue is available here.

On November 15-16, 2007, CDI conducted a training workshop for the committee of the National Parliament of Timor-Leste that is in charge of oversight of the nation’s constitutional affairs, justice, public administration, local government, and government legislation. The first of its kind provided to Timorese parliamentarians, the workshop focused on collecting evidence through public hearings and giving them a greater appreciation of the value of parliamentary committees as a means of “taking Parliament to the people.” More information about the training workshop, as well as background information on Timor-Leste, is available here.

CDI also recently published the February/March 2008 CDI.News, the Centre’s bimonthly newsletter of its new publications, events, and activities.

The Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT) has recently published several studies on Pakistani elections. In January 2008, PILDAT’s Citizens’ Group on Electoral Progress (CGEP) published “Scorecard on Pre-Poll Fairness: Part 1 (December 2006-December 2007),” in which the neutrality of the caretaker government, the president and governors, local governments, and the state-owned media are assessed, and the freedom of private media, independence of the judiciary, effectiveness and credibility of the Electoral Commission, and maintenance of law and order evaluated. The Group finds that the electoral environment during the period studied is “highly unfair” and warns that the “prospects for the fairness of remaining phases of the electoral process appear to be very slim.”

In January 2008, PILDAT and CGEP also published “A Dispassionate Analysis of How Elections Are Stolen and Will of the People Is Defeated: Reflections on the Electoral History of Pakistan (1970-2008),” by Dr. Ijaz Shafi Gilani. The paper assesses the fairness of the last eight general elections in Pakistan and contends that they were widely perceived to be rigged or flawed. It also emphasizes the need for fair and credible elections for the long-sought struggle for political stability in the country. Based on the same electoral analysis, Dr. Ijaz Shafi Gilani’s January 2008 Background Paper on “The Calculus of Electoral Politics in Pakistan (1970-2008)” analyses the voting patterns of Pakistanis during the last eight elections to assess the likely outcome of the February 2008 elections. On January 25, 2008, PILDAT held a briefing on “Understanding Elections in Pakistan” to discuss the findings in these two Background Papers. More information on the event is available here.

On November 17, 2007, the East Asia Institute (EAI, South Korea) published a “Southeast Asian Religious Organizations and Democratic Consolidation: A Conceptual Framework and Case Studies in Indonesia and Thailand,” a working paper by T.J. Cheng. Professor Cheng argues that religious organizations have been largely ignored in analyses of democratic transition and consolidation in East Asian countries. Using Indonesia’s two largest Muslim organizations, Ulama and Muhammadiyah, and Thailand’s Santi Asoke Buddhist organization as case studies, he shows how religious organizations can help preserve and deepen democratic practices in countries facing threats to further consolidation.

In December 2007, the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA, Sri Lanka) published “Brief on Humanitarian Issues,” a policy brief by Bhavani Fonseka and Mirak Raheem that discusses the state of humanitarian issues in Sri Lanka in 2006 and 2007. The report examines some of the fundamental policy issues that policy makers need to address in the realm of human rights and humanitarian problems, including the plight of hundred of thousands people displaced by the 2004 tsunami.

The Asian Barometer published “Malaysia Country Report: Second Wave of Asian Barometer Survey,” by Bridget Welsh, Ibrahim Suffian, and Andrew Aeria, in December 2007. The report is based on interviews designed to gauge contemporary political attitudes in Malaysia conducted between July 14, and August 14, 2007. Survey results indicate a high level of trust in existing institutions, a high sense of responsiveness of the government, support for democracy and the incumbent regime, broad recognition of problems of governance in Malaysia, limited social capacity and political participation, and an increasingly globalized society.

Europe

The Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS, Bulgaria) recently published “Europe and the Western Balkans: The Day After Kosovo’s Independence,” by IRIS Director Ognyan Minchev, in which the author discusses the ramifications of Kosovo’s impending independence and the underlying causes of instability in the Balkans. Mr. Minchev also offers a set of recommendations to policymakers in the EU, as he views the EU as the ultimate bearer of the burden of instability in the Balkans due to its eastward expansion.

In January 2008, the European Stability Initiative (ESI, Germany) published a new Working Paper entitled “A Referendum on the Unknown Turk? Anatomy of an Austrian Debate.” The paper analyzes the history of the debate around Turkey’s accession to the EU in Austria and finds that, prior to 2002, very little difference in public opinion existed between Austria and other EU members. In 2004, actions by Austria’s political elites ensured that there would be little serious debate in favor of an eventual referendum on Turkey’s EU accession.

ESI, in partnership with Turkishpolicy.com, also published the Fall 2007 Turkish Policy Quarterly, which contains articles on the Caspian region; think tanks; democratization in Nagorno-Karabakh; energy security in Europe; Georgia, Turkey, and NATO; EU policy in the south Caucasus; the legal tradition in Georgia; radical Islam in Azerbaijan; the management of resource wealth in democratizing countries; Turkish-Armenian relations; and the Caucasus-Caspian region and its European dimension. Full text of the journal is available here.

The Institute of Public Affairs (ISP, Poland) published the January 2008 Analyses and Opinions on “What Future for Cohesion Policy?” by Tomasz Grzegorz Gross, in which he argues that Poland should join the discussion about the future of EU cohesion policy as soon as possible; that Poland should attempt to maintain the largest possible share of this budget, while also proposing changes regarding the content and management methods of the funds; that these changes should consider the strategic objectives of Polish diplomacy on the European arena; that any reform of the cohesion policy should address the development goals of the Polish economy, with top priority assigned to supporting innovation and competitiveness; and that proper coordination is needed between cohesion policy and other European policies, including rural development and innovation policies.

ISP also recently released several publications associated with its Fellowship Program for Moldovan Public Policy Analysts, which was designed to strengthen the policy center networks and future leaders of Moldovan society by sharing the experience and knowledge in the field of producing policy research and recommendations. Titles published in 2007 include “Community Participation in Decision Making Process at the Local Level: Lessons from Romania and Poland” by Alexei Buzu; “Proposals for a European and Transatlantic Awareness-Raising Campaign in Moldova: The Partnership between the Government, Media, and Non-Governmental Organizations” by Ana Rudico; “The Dialogue between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland and Polish NGOs: Problems, Solutions, and Lessons for Moldova” by Svetlana Pinzari; “Regulating Lobbying: Lessons To Be Learned” by Alexandru Cocirta; and “Cooperation among Public Administration, Higher Education Institutes and Civil Society in Reforming Higher Education System in Line with European Standards” by Arina Kraijdan. Full text of all papers associated with the fellowship program are available here.

In November 2007, the Romanian Academic Society (SAR) published Policy Brief No. 28 on “Romanian Parties Facing Europe,” in which the positions of the political parties contesting Romania’s first election to the European Parliament are summarized. The parties were surveyed on their stances toward social and economic issues, European funds, international topics, and regionalism. The survey finds that all Romanian parties are “euro-enthusiastic” and that there are no significant differences in regard to foreign policy.

In November 2007, the Center for Liberal–Democratic Studies (CLDS, Serbia) published From Poverty to Prosperity: Free Market Based Solutions, by Boris Begovic, Gordana Matkovic, Bosko Mijatovic, and Danica Popovic, in which the authors explore the possibilities of a shift from poverty to prosperity through public policies designed to support free market solutions. Topics covered in the 208-page book include the role of individuals; free trade, growth, and prosperity; foreign aid and prosperity; rule of law, economic growth, and prosperity; public finance and growth; and social assistance. The authors conclude with a basic recommendation for policymakers to “let the market work [to eliminate poverty]—let it create incentives for all decision makers. This assumes the creation and preservation of basic economic liberties, liberties to exchange with other economic agents, and to withhold and safely possess the results from that exchange.”

In January 2008, the Institute for Public Affairs (IVO, Slovakia) published a research report entitled “Citizens Online” by Marian Velsic, a publication that resulted from a project on “Launching e-Governance in Slovakia: Empowering Citizens to Participate, Influence, and Exercise Democratic Control.” The research focuses on identifying the needs and expectations of the citizens in the area of public online services, including knowledge about public online services and preferred means of communication with bureaus; who is and who is not online; hands-on experiences with and evaluation of currently available public online services; the perception of the main advantages and barriers of their use; and interest of citizens in key types of e-services and potential of their use in the future.

The Democratisation and Rule of Law Program of FRIDE (La Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior, Spain) published “EU Democracy Promotion in Nigeria: Between Realpolitik and Idealism,” a December 2007 Working Paper by Anna Khakee, in which the author examines the effect of EU and EU member states’ policies with regard to democracy in Nigeria. Ms. Khakee argues that EU leaders have been “quite timid in their defense of democratic values in Nigeria” and point to dependence on oil, lack of leverage, and lengthy assistance procedures as obstacles to more effective democracy promotion. She also argues that the problems with European democracy promotion in Nigeria “are to be found in the wider relationship between Nigeria and the EU in which issues other than democracy are paramount.”

The Centre for the Study of Public Policy (CSPP, United Kingdom) recently added several new editions to its Studies in Public Policy paper series. “Applying EU Standards to Turkish Governance: A Bottom Up Approach,” by Richard Rose, compares the governance ratings Turks give to their political system with those given in ten new EU member states that the EU decided were “good enough” to become members since 2004. The paper reveals that “Turks rate their system of government better than the threshold standard set by the lowest-placed government that the EU has already admitted,” although it also warns that unresolved issues within Turkey, between the EU and the Turkish government, and among EU states make Turkish admission into the Union problematic. “Party Affiliation of Turkish Voters Today,” by Ersin Kalaycioglu, compares the relative role of the party identification of one’s parents to the influence on party choice of ideological orientations, economic expectations, and the ethnic identities of voters.

Other recently released titles include “Stresses and Opportunities of Post-Communist Transformation: The Impact on Health” by Richard Rose and Martin Bobak; “What Makes a Good Citizen? Attitudes Toward Civic Virtue in Europe and How Social and Political Participation Impact Upon Them” by Florian Pichler and Claire Wallace; “Explaining the Gap Between the Experience and Perception of Corruption” by Richard Rose and William Mishler; “Social Capital and Social Class in Europe: The Role of Social Networks in Social Stratification” by Florian Pichler and Claire Wallace; and “Is Russia Becoming a Normal Society?” by Richard Rose.

Latin America

Middle East

Russia and the Former Soviet Union

United States and Canada