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"Sharansky Urges 'Tough Measures' If Iran Talks Fail" Newsmax
While he understands that the United States might chose to negotiate with the regime over its nuclear program, he urged the White House to constantly make clear to the regime leaders "that the real allies of the free world are not dictators, no matter how so-called moderate they are, but people who are supporting democratic change."
"Debate on Democracy: Theory and Practice in Russia", NatanSharansky.org
The other day I returned from a short but revealing trip to Russia. No matter how many times I come back, I find myself both reunited with the past and attempting to get to know present-day Russia.
"Advocate for autocrats’ to head NIC" Democracy Digest
The appointment of Charles Freeman as chairman of the National Intelligence Council has disturbed democracy and human rights activists. Freeman is closely associated with the regime in Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s most repressive states, and had strong business links with the Bin Laden construction group.
"A Bottom-up Approach to Peace" Project on Middle East Democracy
Natan Sharansky writes that the Israeli elections are affirmation of a wide dissolution with Oslo and any potential quick fixes. Sharansky believes that only a bottom-up approach which focuses on building a peaceful Palestinian society can bring forth true peace. Benyamin Netanyahu has expressed his belief that what is needed for the Palestinians is extraordinary economic development. Sharansky expresses optimism that President Obama will also see that a bottom up approach has the potential for real change, as it’s a true departure from the failed attempts at peace which have dominated for so long. For Sharansky, the elections have provided a possibility for a realistic path forward.
"Note to Obama: keep democracy as foreign policy objective" Democracy Digest
The three pillars of US foreign policy are defense, diplomacy, development, said Hillary Clinton this week. Some commentators have seized on the conspicuous absence of a fourth “D” - democracy - in her frequent invocation of this formula to suggest that democracy promotion may be ”quietly shelved” as a US foreign policy priority.
"Whatever happened to glasnost?" BBC News
"The new Russian journalism first lost its modesty, then its innocence." The words of Alexei Simonov, a Russian media freedom campaigner, sound like an epitaph for "glasnost", the spirit of openness encouraged by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in the late 1980s, which accelerated the collapse of communism.
"Killing Russian Journalists" Washington Times
Whether one is a dissident, a human rights advocate, a journalist or a lawyer, it is no longer safe to do one's job if information uncovered criticizes leading authority figures. The high hopes after the fall of the Soviet Union that Russia could become a full-fledged democracy are fading. In December, then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice declared that Russian suppression of the media and of dissidents was part of "clearly authoritarian trends."
"Amid Gaza rubble, Sharansky optimistic" Chicago Sun Times
Natan Sharansky, the former Soviet dissident turned Israeli leader, has demonstrated remarkable foresight at key moments in recent Middle East history. Too often, though, his warnings were ignored.
"Obama will not focus on ME democracy" The Jerusalem Post
The Obama administration is unlikely to continue the press for democracy and freedom in the Middle East that was a mainstay of the Bush administration's policy in the region, a former senior US administration official said on Sunday.
Natan Sharansky Speaks at the University of Pennsylvania on His Most Recent Book "Defending identity"
Natan Sharansky emphasized the role of identity and preserving democracy at the University of Pennsylvania.
"Some Questions for Former President Jimmy Carter" CAMERA Snapshots
Former President Jimmy Carter has enjoyed pretty sympathetic (bordering on fawning) coverage during his book tour in support of We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land: A Plan That Would Work (Simon and Schuster, 2009). Journalists who interview Carter allow his factual errors go unchallenged and steer clear of the controversy surrounding his error-laden and factually-challenged text Palestine Peace Not Apartheid published by Simon and Schuster in 2006.
"Hamas still rules through fear" Elder of Ziyon Blog
Vacuums in Arab societies tend to be filled by extremists, and in this case it was refilled by the old dictators.
"Democracy's March Continues As Iraqis Go to the Polls" FOXNews.com
As a result of Iraqi democracy, the march of history in the Middle East has changed direction. It used to be a series of sclerotic authoritarian regimes moving increasingly toward of hereditary dictatorships - in Saudi Arabia, Syria, Egypt, Libya and others. But their legitimacy is now called into question by their own people every time Iraqis go to the polls. People throughout the region are asking the question, ever more openly, why can't they chose their leaders if the Iraqis can?
"Sharansky: Netanyahu won't clash with Obama" The Jerusalem Post
Former minister Natan Sharansky, who has been a frequent guest at the White House in recent years, has rejected allegations from Kadima that if elected prime minister, Likud chairman Binyamin Netanyahu would not get along with the administration of US President Barack Obama. He met with Obama a year ago and discussed the bottom-up theory of solving the Middle East conflict that Sharansky has been talking about for years and which has become the basis of Netanyahu's "economic peace" diplomatic plan.
"A Threat to Putin’s Big Plans" NYTimes.com
Over the last eight years, as Vladimir V. Putin has amassed ever more power, Russians have often responded with a collective shrug, as if to say: Go ahead, control everything — as long as we can have our new cars and amply stocked supermarkets, our sturdy ruble and cheap vacations in the Turkish sun. “We talk about a lack of democracy in Russia, but I like my own formula for the country, which is authoritarianism with the consent of the governed,” said Dmitri Trenin, director of the Carnegie Moscow Center. “And it can be taken away.”
"The Orange Way Editorial-Weely Roundup" The Orange Way
Even more important than their ideological disdain for our nation, America serves as the foil for Iran's crumbling economic and social state. Iran's leaders maintain power by projecting America as the enemy and cause for any of their ills. This works to unify citizens against a common enemy, while they enduring additional hardships in the name of the greater cause. (Natan Sharansky's The Case for Democracy makes this argument much better than I can.) As a result, Iran will never make genuine peace with America with its current leaders in place.
"Talking Softly About Democracy Promotion" NYTimes.com
Here is one thing on which democracy experts agree: When Barack Obama took the oath of office last Tuesday, he did more in one instant, as a minority candidate, to promote the American ideal of democracy to the outside world than any of his predecessors ever could.
"Some Arab 'friends' need a lesson in democracy" Theage.com.au
An Islamic heritage does not preclude having an elected government.
"Peace with Islam is A Call to Democracy" A Million Chimpanzees:
An excellent book that illustrates the plight of a subjugated people is Natan Sharansky's The Case for Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror. Sharansky himself was a Soviet Jewish dissident, living in Russia during the cold war period. He points out that, while some of the citizens truly supported the Soviet goals and were "partners" with the oppressive regime, most people wanted to at least have a greater dialogue with the west and at most, the freedom to leave the Communist state. Few people live in a dictatorship by choice.
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