Local Voices

Just Security’s “Local Voices” section features perspectives and analysis from individuals directly affected by conflict, human rights abuses, and political crises around the world.

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320 Articles
France's president Emmanuel Macron (L) and Chad's president Idriss Deby shake hands as they hold a press conference at the presidential palace in N'Djamena, on December 23, 2018.

Chad’s Counterterrorism Support Abroad Drives Repression and Discontent at Home

The international community should ensure Chad’s military participation in countering terrorism does not come at the expense of freedoms for its citizens.
Pedestrians look on as a tank is transported on a truck in the streets of N'Djamena on January 3, 2020, upon their return after a months-long mission fighting Boko Haram in neighbouring Nigeria.

Counterterrorism Assistance to Chad for the Sahel: The Price the People Pay

With an influx of international security aid has come diplomatic cover for government corruption, impunity, and the consolidation of power.
A Lebanese protester waves a national flag amid clashes with security forces in the vicinity of Parliament in central Beirut on August 10, 2020.

Lebanon’s Peace Cartel is Irredeemable – How Donors Choose to Help Can Tip the Scales

Who controls aid matters for the immediate disaster response and for the leverage of those who have suffered the disaster against those who enabled it.
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AFRICOM’s Improved Civilian Casualty Reporting System Still Leaves Gaps for Somalia

Only with more ways to submit reports and the proper followup can the U.S. military start to rebuild trust among communities harmed by its actions.
Police officers standby during an inter-departmental counter-terrorism exercise, codenamed CATCHMOUNT at Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point in Hong Kong on March 20, 2020 in Hong Kong, China.

UN’s “Counter-Terrorism Week” Misses the Mark in Marginalizing Civil Society

The UN is ignoring the calls of more than 400 CSOs just a month ago for a different approach to effectively counter terrorism. The outcome will be clear.
A police officer sits on an impounded power bike and interrogates the owner for failing to comply with the sit-at-home order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus on Lagos Ibadan expressway, on April 28, 2020.

COVID-19 and the Shrinking Civic Space in Nigeria

With the same rapidity as its spread, COVID-19 seems to be taking over as the major driver of shrinking civic space in many parts of the world, displacing the popular buzzwords:…
A Yemeni man looks at graffiti protesting against US drone strikes on September 19, 2018 in Sana'a, Yemen.

U.S. Fails to Acknowledge Killing Yemeni Civilians

A Yemen-based human rights organization has documented the impact of U.S. air strikes for the last seven years. The results contradict DOD's report.
U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Monday, April 3, 2017, at the West Wing entrance of the White House in Washington, D.C.

Coronavirus Adds Urgency to Ending Egypt’s Detention and Torture of Children

The United States has long justified its support for Egyptian security services as necessary for the security and stability of Egypt and the region. Yet the means by which the…
Residents obtain water from a natural source from the hill El Avila after the water supply was suspended following a nationwide blackout occurred March 10, 2019 in Caracas, Venezuela.

How to Hold Venezuela’s Maduro Accountable for Human Rights Abuses

The Trump administration's focus on the regime’s corruption, manipulation of the election process, and narco-terrorism omits other egregious violations.
A fighter of the UAE-trained Security Belt Force, dominated by members of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) which seeks independence for south Yemen, waves a separatist flag as he walks towards a tank at the Fayush-Alam crossroads on the eastern entrance Aden from the Abyan province in southern Yemen on August 30, 2019.

Yemen: Where Coalitions Come to Die

Yemen is the cemetery of invaders, or so the ancient proverb goes, and today it is certainly the burial ground of foreign military coalitions.
A French soldier looks at a child as he patrols in the streets of Gossi, center Mali, on March 25, 2019.

The International Security Echo-Chamber: Getting Civil Society Into the Room

It is time to make sure the public fully understands the harmful impacts of their governments’ interventions on the lives of others, and to reaffirm that security can be built…
A person types on a laptop. Translucent icons litter the image to represent cybersecurity.

CTRL+HALT+Defeat: State-Sponsored Surveillance and the Suppression of Dissent

A new lawsuit in Israeli court seeks accountability for the export of malicious spyware used for digital surveillance of human rights defenders, journalists, and political dissidents.…
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