Democracy & Rule of Law

Just Security’s expert authors provide analysis on threats and challenges to democracy and the rule of law in the United States and globally. Coverage includes analysis of the separation of powers, good governance, democratic backsliding, authoritarianism, judicial independence, freedom of the press and association, and accountability for rule of law violations.

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3,333 Articles
Three side-by side images of demonstrations in Sudan. The two on the outer edges show many people marching in the streets. The center image shows a person sitting on a low brick fence.

How Many (More) Sudanese Have to Die for Democracy?

Mass protests planned for Saturday will be a test of wills. It is safe to bet on the Sudanese people to brave the threat of escalated violence. The question is whether political…
Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Bert Koenders hosts the large international consultations with representatives of the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) and the Anti ISIS coalition in the fight against terror In The Hague, January 11, 2016. The representatives sit in a large room around tables arranged into a square. Large screens show projections of the minister speaking.

Watchlisting the World: Digital Security Infrastructures, Informal Law, and the “Global War on Terror”

The Global Counterterrorism Forum's new "toolkit" ignores input, tracks US practice to dangerously expand the unaccountable post-9/11 system.
US President Joe Biden participates virtually in the annual ASEAN Summit from the South Court Auditorium of the White House in Washington, DC, on October 26, 2021. On the left, President Biden is seen at a desk with his hands folded in front of his face. On the right, is a screen shot of the virtual event with the logo for ASEAN against a background of the world map focused on Asia and Australia and stars from the US flag. “US-ASEAN Virtual Summit” is written across the background.

ASEAN Has Failed on Myanmar. What’s Next?

ASEAN excluded the Myanmar junta from its summit this week - but remains reluctant to condemn the coup or provide robust help to the people of Myanmar. How should the rest of the…
National Counterterrorism Center Director Matthew Olsen, FBI Director James Comey, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, CIA Director John Brennan, Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn testify during a hearing before Senate (Select) Intelligence Committee January 29, 2014 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.

20 Years After the Patriot Act, America Must End Secret Law

Of the many abuses that sprung from the Patriot Act’s toxic soil, the most pernicious and enduring is the growth of secret laws. The insistence that the government must not only…
US President George W. Bush signs into law an anti-terrorism bill that expands police and surveillance powers in response to September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, 26 October 2001 in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC. With Bush from left to right are Rep. Mike Oxley, R-OH, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-UT, Sen Pat Leahy, D-VT, Sen. Harry Reid, D-NV, and Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-WI.

Rethinking Surveillance on the 20th Anniversary of the Patriot Act

20 years ago, Congress enacted the PATRIOT Act. It's time to move on from that outmoded model of surveillance.
Sudanese protesters lift national flags as they rally on 60th Street in the capital Khartoum, to denounce overnight detentions by the army of government members, on October 25, 2021.

After the Coup in Sudan: Key (Short-Term) Indicators for Democratic Survival

Key indicators to measure the prospect for democracy to survive the current crisis — from scale of street protests to army's withstanding defections to specific words chosen…
A view of the supreme court building in Victoria on March 5, 2012. A sign reads “The Judiciary: Supreme Court of Sychelles.” The building is characterized by white brick and dark wooden trimmings.

Amnesty & Accountability in Seychelles

The Seychelles' truth commission has the unusual power to grant - not just recommend - amnesties. What is their status in international law, and role in transitional justice?
Legal blind justice Themis metal statue with scales on chains

Judicial Secrecy: How To Fix the Over-sealing of Federal Court Records

The lack of uniform procedures for sealing federal court records has resulted in excessive secrecy that has caused considerable harm.
A photographer kneels on the ground in front of two cars to take a photo of one of them. The cars, a 2015 Ferrari LaFerrari and a 2010 Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 Coupe model car, sit stationary on a brick road. People walk past in the background. The cars are part of an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland.

How American Kleptocracy Works

Review: Casey Michel's book, “American Kleptocracy,” tells the tale of US financial secrecy via two of the world’s great kleptocrats.
Relatives gather to look at the dead bodies of ten people including children after a raid on their farms in Bariire, some 50 km west of Mogadishu, on August 25, 2017.

Insight Into Biden’s Counterterrorism Thinking Suggests More of the Same

Rather than rebrand painfully flawed approaches, the US must heed the calls and ideas of civil society, academics, and practitioners.
Afghans watch the arrival of some of the ten-truck Red Cross convoy carrying 120 tonnes of mixed food-stuffs for homeless, on January 8, 1995, in Kabul.

Taliban Governance of NGOs – What to Expect and How to Respond

The last Taliban government imposed restrictions on registration and operation of NGOs. What can we expect from this Taliban government?
US Attorney General Merrick Garland, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta arrive for a press conference on Civil Enforcement Action at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC on September 9, 2021.

Reopen the Obstruction of Justice Case Against Trump

A key item in Attorney General Merrick Garland’s inbox is gathering dust: Volume 2 of the report by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, whose team investigated possible obstruction…
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