Blog 3 Columns

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Blog 3 Columns

Where is Sri Lankan peace process heading?1
- International Relations and Global Affairs, Op-ed
- 18/05/2015
The world might have moved on but the after effects of the bloody battle still linger in the northern region of Sri Lanka. The peace and reconciliation process is still fragile and punctuated by various challenges.
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Trust through transparency?0
- EU Governance and Politics, Op-ed
- 14/05/2015
There is a general sense that our political institutions are experiencing a crisis of trust. Only recently, the Luxembourg tax scandal – under Jean-Claude Juncker the country signed secret tax deals with 350 international companies – caused a public outcry. Indirectly related to this crisis are the many transparency provisions with which the European Union seeks to achieve legitimacy in the eyes of its citizens. Can a lack of trust be remedied with a large dose of openness?
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People with disabilities as an invisible workforce potential 4
- Human Rights and Migration, Op-ed
- 10/05/2015
According to the latest EU data, there is still a 26% difference in employment rates for persons with and without disabilities across the EU[1]. This is 30 percentage points lower than the Europe 2020 target of 75%[2] employment for persons with disabilities.
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Macedonia’s civil society stands up against police brutality 0
- International Relations and Global Affairs, Op-ed
- 06/05/2015
June 5th, 2011 in Skopje, Macedonia: 23 year-old Martin Neskovski was beaten to death by an officer of the special police forces during the celebration after the election victory of VMRO-DPMNE, Macedonia’s ruling political party. Eyewitnesses confirmed seeing a police officer brutally beating the boy and dragging the body away from the crowd. In its initial reports during the two days following the boy’s death, the Ministry of Interior stated that there were no signs of violence on the victim’s body. The event immediately triggered series of peaceful street protests by thousands of young people in Macedonia and eventually lead to the conviction of one police officer.
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Don’t lag behind!0
- Digital Policy and Internet Governance, Op-ed
- 05/05/2015
The European growth has been substandard for the last decades, but only recently have policymakers understood that Europe’s performance is closely linked to the performance of its universities.
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Why the EU needs a unified aid policy 0
- International Relations and Global Affairs, Op-ed
- 29/04/2015
Having member state contribute individually is an inefficient way to allocate aid – rather, the EU should strengthen the EC’s ability to enact common foreign policy goals and recognise the organizational power of collective action.
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French anti-terrorism bill: a new orwellian reality?0
- International Relations and Global Affairs, Op-ed
- 26/04/2015
French society holds its breath till the 5th May of 2015, the day when the final decision on the Anti-terrorism Bill proposal will be made. And they well have a reason to be afraid.
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Which way for Scottish wind energy?0
- Environment and Energy, Op-ed
- 20/04/2015
Scotland’s vast wilderness and potential for development in wind and wave energy has earned it the label of the ‘Saudi Arabia of renewables’; a concept that the SNP were quick to seize on during their campaign for independence.
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Cyprus: Russia’s Potemkin village in the European Union?3
- International Relations and Global Affairs, Op-ed
- 16/04/2015
A growing and significant partner for the European Union, Russia has also often played a double game aimed at destabilizing the Old Continent and continuing its policy of balkanization within the EU.
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