Asia

The “rise” of regional political parties seems to be an eternal theme on the Indian political scene. The exponential increase in the number of parties contesting elections, particularly over the past two decades, and the shrinking margins of victory in parliamentary elections are direct results of the emergence of new regional power centers.

Emerged from an anti-corruption movement, the Aam Aadmi Party has made a spectacular entrance into Indian politics and challenged the rules of Indian politics.

In the late spring or the early summer of 2014 India will conduct its sixteenth general election. The battle lines between the two principal, national political parties, the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), are now being drawn.

The country’s natural resources, especially its abundance of water, could bring great benefits to the Afghans – but only if the right conditions can be achieved. A summary of "Afghanistan's Transition in the Making?"

The country’s natural resources, especially its abundance of water, could bring great benefits to the Afghans – but only if the right conditions can be achieved. A summary of "Afghanistan's Transition in the Making?"

The opposition in Thailand continues to occupy Bangkok. The protests have been accompanied by widespread rumors of a coup as well as social tensions. Elaine Haller from our office in Bangkok analyzes the reasons for the escalation of the events.

Women parliamentarians from all political parties under the Women’s Parliamentary Caucus (WPC) adopted a historic declaration to protect and preserve the provisions of reserved seats for women in the national assembly, senate and the provincial assemblies in Pakistan. It also urges upon the political parties to select women on direct elections and to increase their representation on leadership positions within political parties and other political forums.

Pakistan has been hit by one of the worst natural disasters in its history as massive floods inundated large parts of its territory. Like many international organizations, the Heinrich Böll Stiftung’s regional office in Pakistan along with its partner local organizations immediately responded to the challenge to help Pakistanis cope up with the disastrous humanitarian situation caused by floods. Our organization has responded in two phases, supported by the German Ministry of Development Cooperation.

In July Pakistan was hit by a flood crisis of unexpected dimension. Against this background, the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung initiated a dialog with Pakistani and German representatives from politics, academics and the NGO sector on political and economic impacts of the flood and on current needs and challenges.

In nuclear-armed Pakistan, everyday cities plunge into darkness and factories grind to a halt for several hours as the electricity goes out. Some Pakistanis look towards importing nuclear reactors as a solution.