Democracy

Energy policy plays a central role following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Ahead of the EU-Western Balkans leaders' meeting on Thursday 23 June 2022, Simon Ilse spoke to Dirk Buschle, Deputy Director of the Vienna-based international organisation Energy Community, about the energy and geopolitical implications of EU enlargement.

The approval of the Brazilian General Data Protection Legislation (LGPD) in 2019 marked a new paradigm in the defence of fundamental rights in Brazil. However, Brazilian society still struggles to enforce LGPD’s rules. One huge challenge has been the difficulty in matching the promotion of public sector efficiency with personal data protection in recent policies of the government to reduce bureaucracy. The following paragraphs will cover some recent episodes where these values have clashed in a false dichotomy.

The most urgent issues facing the European Union following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are energy independence, defense and fighting inflation, according to a representative survey of German citizens. During this "Zeitenwende”, watershed moment, they expect Germany to play a more active role in the EU.

El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bukele, is attempting to respond to the ongoing violence in the country by declaring a state of emergency. Critics see this predominantly as a militarisation of politics and a further step towards the breakdown of democracy.

The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland not only remains a matter of contention in UK-EU relations but is also very much an issue that divides opinion in Northern Ireland. Polling data that we have collected allows us to see what concerns voters in Northern Ireland most about the Protocol, how opinion has evolved since the start of 2021, and the nature of the divisions that exist over it. It also shows how voters want those who won seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly elections on 5 May 2022 to vote in 2024 on the endurance of core elements of the Protocol. 

On Monday night, a surprise draft ruling by conservative Justice Samuel Alito was released in the U.S. indicating that a majority on the Supreme Court wants to reverse the legalization of abortions. Ella Müller, director of the Democracy Programme at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Washington, DC, puts this impending caesura and the political developments behind it in context.

What are the impacts of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on human labour and the environment? How do legislative proposals for regulating AI in Europe and Brazil respond to these impacts beyond discussions on surveillance and automated decision-making bias?

More reports about rapes by the Russian army against the Ukrainian girls and women who are arriving in Slovakia have been exposed. In the meantime, the Slovak parliament is discussing proposals on banning abortion for women without permanent residency. This cynical targeting of Ukrainian girls and women is disturbing, says Denisa Nešťáková.

Students and teachers from the European Union still want to take part in exchanges with British universities, but the UK’s withdrawal from the Erasmus+ scheme has thrown up obstacles and increased costs. Some of the least privileged individuals, institutions and regions could lose out, writes Sarah Morris.

After the first round of the presidential elections in France, there is everything to play for. The incumbent President, Emmanuel Macron, is in the lead (27.84%), but this time, Marine Le Pen (23.15%) has a real chance of victory in the runoff of 24 April 2022. This is our analysis of the elections.