Month: September 2019

A Migrant in the Common European House: Pavel Baev Interviewed by Stein Tønnesson

Pavel Baev, interviewed by Stein Tønnesson In the late 1980s, when I took part in drafting speeches for Mikhail Gorbachev underpinning his concept of an ‘All-European House’, one part of my work was to strive towards the elimination of tactical nuclear weapons in Europe. Nothing came out of it at the time. Now, after more… Read more »

The authoritarian surveillant assemblage: Authoritarian state surveillance in Turkey

In January 2018, the Turkish military and allied Syrian rebel forces launched a military operation against Kurdish YPG (People’s Protection Units) fighters in Afrin in Northern Syria. In the aftermath, Turkish authorities arrested, detained, and prosecuted 648 people for social media posts criticizing the military operation. In addition to state actors, civilian informants were involved… Read more »

Sports Could Be the Greatest Ambassador Kosovo Has Ever Had

On the evening of Tuesday, September 10, Kosovo’s national football team played England in its biggest match to date. Prior to the match, the team had gone undefeated since October 2017. The success of the national team has echoed throughout the world and the team is fast becoming Kosovo’s most successful export. #ENGKOS and Kosovo… Read more »

Creating a Third Space in the Cyprus Conflict: Mete Hatay Interviewed by Cindy Horst

Mete Hatay, interviewed by Cindy Horst Seeing victim become perpetrator, perpetrator become victim – seeing them change places depending on the situation – triggered a lot of questions in my mind… Whatever you imagine for the future, you always construct it from the past. And you cannot say, ‘let’s put the past behind us and… Read more »

Review of Violence: Humans in Dark Times

Evans, Brad & Lennard, Natasha, Violence: Humans in Dark Times. San Fransisco, CA: City Lights Books, 2018, 335 pp., ISBN-10 0872867544 In her writings on violence and totalitarianism, Hannah Arendt famously used the term “dark times” to refer to not just the monstrosities of the 20th  century, but the necessity of countering violence with sustained… Read more »

From Anarchy to Enlightened Absolutism? Sverre Lodgaard Interviewed by Hilde Henriksen Waage

Sverre Lodgaard, interviewed by Hilde Henriksen Waage What kind of journey was it, from life as a young researcher at PRIO in the 1960s, to directorial roles at PRIO and the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s? How do Sverre Lodgaard’s life and work connect with his research career,… Read more »

Resisting Civil Society Repression in Zambia and Bangladesh

In recent years, dozens of countries around the world have been closing civil society space, clamping down on the ability of civil society organizations (CSOs) to operate freely. Alarmingly, this trend is taking place not only in countries with autocratic governments, but also in democratic countries. How are CSOs being impacted, and how are they… Read more »