Latest Resources
Democratic Space in Asia-Pacific
Asia and the Pacific, Democracy, Report, Academic/Think Tank, UNDP ProducedThis publication is part of the background material for the The Oslo Governance Forum (OGF). The OGF took place on 3-5 October 2011, and was organised by the UNDP’s Democratic Governance Group in collaboration with United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF), ActionAid, ACT Alliance, World Bank Institute and PRIA Global Partnership. The Forum focused on participatory governance assessments and...
2011 Report on Cambodian Democracy, Elections and Reform
Asia and the Pacific, Democracy, Report, Civil SocietyFollowing on the last year’s Report on Cambodian Democracy, Elections and Reform, COMFREL continues its reports, which assess the annual state of democracy in Cambodia. The annual report takes a comparative approach in asking, what changed in comparison to previous years? Did the political system of Cambodia progress toward a consolidated democracy or is stagnation or even a regression...
Blurring the Boundaries - Citizen Action Across States and Societies
Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Civil Society, Democracy, Latin America and the Carribean, Report, Academic/Think Tank, DonorBlurring the Boundaries - Citizen Action Across States and Societies provides a summary of nearly a decade of research on citizen engagement done by the Development Research Centre on Citizenship, Participation and Accountability (the Citizenship DRC). The brief note Blurring the Boundaries - Citizen Action Across States and Societies has been produced by the Development Research Centre on...
2009 Report on Cambodia Democracy, Elections, and Reform
Asia and the Pacific, Democracy, Electoral Systems, Report, Civil SocietyIn this document COMFREL reviews the current situation in Cambodia as related to democracy and elections, core freedoms, good governance, legal and judiciary reform, and describes a series of actions taken by the government and ruling party which have significantly undermined the proper functioning of democracy and its prerequisites. COMFREL calls on the Royal Cambodian Government (RGC) to...
Constitutional Reform and Democracy in Thailand - A National Survey of the Thai People 2009
Asia and the Pacific, Civil Society, Democracy, Report, Civil SocietyThis report presents the findings of The Asia Foundation’s first survey of the Thai electorate. The survey was conducted through face-to face interviews with a random, nationally representative sample of 1,500 voters in Bangkok and 26 provinces nationwide (excluding the three southern border provinces) between June 13 and July 5, 2009. This survey represents the latest...
Undermining Democracy: Strategies and Methods of 21st Century Authoritarians
Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Democracy, Europe and CIS, Latin America and the Carribean, Report, Civil SocietyFreedom House, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and Radio Free Asia undertook an examination of five pivotal states — Russia, China, Iran, Venezuela, and Pakistan — to advance our common understanding of the strategies and methods these regimes are employing, both within and beyond their borders, to impede human rights and democratic development. The countries...
How to revitalise democracy assistance: recipients' views
Africa, Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Civil Society, Democracy, Europe and CIS, Latin America and the Carribean, Report, Civil SocietyFor some years now, donors and non-governmental promotors of democracy have insisted that they are committed to designing democracy policies that are more demand-led. This report provides a comprehensive account of information and opinions collected from this ‘demand-side'. However, it also elaborates on the main concerns of local stakeholders, their...
Young democracies in the balance: lessons for the international community
Asia and the Pacific, Democracy, Latin America and the Carribean, Report, Civil SocietyIn the last few years democracy promotion has gone high up on the agenda of the international community and aid agencies. It has been observed that countries like Thailand, Bolivia, Venezuela, and Russia are going backwards in terms of democracy leading to concerns about the viability of this regime type in the developing world. This brief delves into the reasons for the...
Burma's Electoral Framework Is Fundamentally Undemocratic
Asia and the Pacific, Civil Society, Conflict, Democracy, Electoral Systems, Human Rights, Report, Civil SocietyBurma’s military regime, known as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), intends to hold national elections sometime this year, the first since 1990. The polls will be the fifth step in the socalled “Seven Step Roadmap to Democracy” (the Roadmap) announced by the SPDC in 2003. The first four steps related to the development of a new constitution, adopted in 2008,...
Democratic Governance Indicators: Assessing the State of Governance in Mongolia
Asia and the Pacific, Democracy, Report, Academic/Think TankThis investigation is the first comprehensive study carried out in Mongolia for the purpose of developing democratic governance indicators. The study informs the monitoring of the parliament-approved 9th national Millennium Development Goal - democratic governance. The Follow-up to ICNRD-5 Project has been established by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia and the UNDP Mongolia in...