Lula Livre! Ex-President Lula da Silva Has Conviction Annulled

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, known as Lula, has had his political rights restored after The Supreme Court’s new ruling allowed a judge to annul his criminal convictions. In this article we will cover the history of Lula and his conviction, and what his freedom means for the political landscape of Brazil.

[Analysis] How to Counter China’s Vaccine Diplomacy in the Balkans

Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, China has developed a ‘mask diplomacy’ aimed at the Western Balkans; later evolved into the so-called vaccine diplomacy.

Can the European Union counter China’s ambitions in its eastern neighbourhood?

The Unknown Face of Yemen: A Conversation with Mariam Al-Dhubani

The war in Yemen is often depicted as a proxy war between Sunnite Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran.
For too long this reductive interpretation has been hindering a comprehensive peace process by disregarding local actors and social dynamics.
The present TNGO human story is aimed at looking beyond such an obscuring veil through the eyes of Mariam al-Dhubani, a Yemeni-Russian award-winning journalist and filmmaker, whose camera strives to capture the true face of her unknown homeland.

Reddit vs. Wall Street: Regulating is the Best Way Forward

In January 2021, failing company GameStop saw the value of its shares soar by 1.700%. It was the beginning of the Reddit vs Wall Street confrontation. Behind the unexpected rise were Reddit users. Their purpose was to show discontent with the unfair dynamics of the financial market. Despite the popular support for the initiative, small investors encountered heavy financial constraints. All in all, the impression was that “all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others”.

The financial market, though, is a human creation. As such, none of its features are either “natural”, nor necessary. This means that the system can be corrected and improved. And this “David vs Goliath”-like clash helped pointing out some elements that need to be reformed or regulated. Therefore, the first part of this article will sum up the events. The second part will point out the most problematic issues arisen. Finally, the third part will suggest some corrections that could improve the health of the financial market.

Child Marriage as a Contemporary Form of Slavery

Increasing amounts of scholarship in the international law community are showing that an inextricable link exists between child marriage and contemporary slavery. In light of this, child marriage can no longer be treated lightly or simply discounted as being part of culture. Child marriage violates the human rights of the child and goes against one of the key non-derogable international law norms: the prohibition of slavery.

The Geopolitical, Economic, and Environmental Impacts of TurkStream

On January 1, 2021, at a televised event held near Novi Sad, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic attended the opening ceremony for the Serbian section of the BalkanStream natural-gas pipeline, part of a larger project known as TurkStream which delivers Russian gas to Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Hungary.

Navalny: Harbinger of Democracy or Flash in the Pan?

The arrest of Alexey Navalny upon his return to Russia has triggered widespread protests. For many, they represent the first step towards democratization. This article, though, argues that things are more complicated. The first problem is that Navalny is a much more controversial figure than he seems. In fact, his idea of democracy might be very different from the Western concept of democracy. The second problem is less idiosyncratic and more strategic. Namely, the Russia regime seems willing to lock up Navalny for quite some time. And this alone, could leave protestors without a leader and without purpose.