Promotion of Democracy

The Kabul Documenta 13 has opened its gates on June 20th, to the Afghan public, preceded by an official opening ceremony that was attended by the Goethe Institute Afghanistan, donors, diplomats, a delegation of the Documenta 13 and, last not least, the artists themselves.

After brutal attacks against African refugees in conjuncion with a demonstration at Tel Aviv's HaTikva, high-ranking politicans of the Israeli governement are demanding a tougher action against illegal immigrants. But there are also more and more voices that support more agreeable solutions.

By 2014, all international troops withdraw from Afghanistan. Which future perspectives exist for the country? Will the civil commitment continued beyond? These questions were pursued at the conference “10 Years after Petersberg: Where does Afghanistan stand today?”

During the Arab uprisings, an unprecedented number of women took to the streets, paving the way for a more important role in politics. However, in the transitional period that follows, they now have to fight against their exclusion from the political arena. This fight will blur the conflict lines between the „traditional-religious“ and the „urban-modern-non-religious“ blocs. 

In 2014 Western combat troops will leave Afghanistan after 13 years of engagement. In the wake of this caesura certain policy changes of actors of the international community have taken place. This report traces these changes in the cases of the negotiations with the Taliban and German governmental development cooperation.

In Afghanistan, corruption affects people’s lives in many ways. In an interview, Yama Torabi, Director of the Afghan NGO Integrity Watch Afghanistan, criticizes the international perception that corruption is an inherent aspect of Afghan culture. There are alternatives howerer.

To the degree that the international community is concerned with the intra-Afghan agreement and security handover, so should it also be concerned that the process does not harm Afghan civil society, but rather ensure that it has an active voice in the process. 

The Afghan region Loya Paktia is very much embedded in tribal traditions, which have in the past provided security in the area. Due to lost windows of opportunity, security has deteriorated to a large extend since 2005. This policy paper discusses the problematic relations between the main actors, why reconciliation initiatives to date have failed in the Southeast, and puts forward some practical suggestions to ensure a more effective strategy.

Interview with Supinya Klangnarong, Media-rights advocate and researcher, about the crisis in Thailand, the polarisation of Thai society and the mistakes of government, and protesters.

Pakistan is a war zone facing serious threats from militants and terrorists besides a number of other problems and difficulties that urgently demand the establishment of democratic structures as well as rule of law. In the light of the current crisis, high-ranking guests from Pakistan and various German experts discussed structures and deficits of rule of law as well as the current state of affairs.