Satire may not necessarily change politics but, as most articles in this edition illustrate, it is a powerful tool to undermine propaganda, expose abuses of power, and ridicule cultural and social taboos.

The democratic environment over the last decade provided a crucial opportunity for civil and political activities in Afghanistan in which not only political parties but also civil society organizations, youth groups and networks were founded to consolidate democracy and endeavor to push forward their participation in politics and society.

With this edition of Perspectives, the Heinrich Böll Foundation explores some of the approaches and instruments that communities and their NGO partners have developed to create room for community-centred stakeholder participation, and to champion community interests and rights.

In April 2015 Burundi’s ruling party announced that President Pierre Nkurunziza would be seeking a third term in office. The following day protests against the regime began. Since that day hundreds of civilians, military and security personnel have died. This paper examines the trajectory closely and explains the background of the crisis.

In this action research project, experiences with quota designs, challenges and achievements of quota parliamentarians, in terms of substantive representation, are reviewed in Afghanistan. The focus lies on the concept of political patriarchy, that is, an androcentric to sometimes even misogynist political configuration in relation to (i) power relations, (ii) socio-political culture and gender roles prescriptions, (iii) institutional setups, practices and discourses.

Democracy is under pressure today in many parts of the world. Institutions of democracy assistance and pioneers of political freedom have been struggling against a significant headwind for some time now. The present publication “For Democracy” outlines and analyzes the state of democracy worldwide as well as the possibilities of democracy assistance.

In this edition of Perspectives Asia, the authors highlight certain aspects of gender relations and offer some very personal insights into the situations of women and men in Asia.

The annexation of Crimea in March 2014 and the launch of a hybrid war against Ukraine was Russia’s answer to the revolution triggered by Euromaidan. In order to explain the differing reactions of individual Visegrad countries, the offices of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung in Prague and Warsaw asked their partner organisations to systematically analyse how these countries have dealt with the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The study analyses the Hungarian Government’s rhetoric and policy measures with regard to refugee, asylum and migration issues and  shows how democratic opposition parties, the far-right, and civil society actors have responded to the Government’s anti-refugee policies.

The Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung has commissioned the second volume of a study to examine the political choices of the Hungarian youth. The scope of this study has been extended to include the political involvement and attitudes of that part of the Hungarian youth who already are emigrating or are planning to soon move abroad.