Globalisation and Transformation

In wars, rape has been used as a tool to go beyond the physical and military defeat of the enemy, to subdue a society politically and morally. The present article, written by psycho-therapist Dr. Jamal Khalil Sobh, sheds light on the repeated war crime of rapes of women, including the recent tragic incidents in Syria.

With the constitutional amendments adopted on the 11th of March, Viktor Orbán has once again caused a surprise. The reactions of the Western European public show that there is still an inadequate grasp of how political power is exercised by Orbán’s government. European democrats now finally need to formulate a common position against the power centralization in the country.

The anthology „Writing Revolution: The Voices from Tunis to Damascus“, supported by the Heinrich Böll Foundation’s office in Beirut, is one of the six books to receive the „English PEN Award for Outstanding Writing in Translation“ in the year 2013. 

The EU is facing a crisis. But this crisis is not only about a currency. When Europe’s citizens are only spectators while governments are taking decisions, democracy is in danger. To reduce this lack of democracy we do need a better election system, effective participation instruments for EU citizens and European referenda. 

Transatlantic 20/20: The US and Europe in an Interpolar World, held at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung in Berlin on June 16, brought together experts from think tanks, the media, and the foreign service to give their take on the scenarios and share how they think the future might unfold.

An impressive display of fireworks at the Mont des Arts concluded the Belgian EU presidency. Despite orignal doubts due to the Belgian government crisis, the Belgian presidency was a success. A look at the Trophy Cabinet of the belgian diplomats.

Did the Belgian Presidency of the European Union go beyond playing the honest broker and take on the role of providing the necessary driving force required by the EU with regard to internal and external developments? An assessment of Implementing the Treaty of Lisbon, Policies to overcome the crisis, the European Citizens’ Initiative and external relations.

Hungary was long considered a model for democracy in the former Eastern Bloc countries. It currently hits the headlines because of the controversial media laws and other moves by the national conservative Fidesz party, which endanger essential elements of the constitutional framework.

The Belgian Presidency of the EU is coming to its end. A review regarding European Foreign Policy covering the implementation of the Treaty of Lisbon, successes and failurees of international summits and noticeable progress at the European Council.

Much of the public is deaf to the claims of President Obama that poverty and unemployment levels would be worse without the injection of stimulus money by his administration which provided tax relief and income support for millions of Americans.