Latest Democracy News

Save the Children disputes abuse allegations after Guatemalan prosecutors raid offices

Apr. 26, 2024 19:48 PM EDT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — The aid group Save the Children said there is nothing to support accusations of misconduct, speaking after Guatemalan prosecutors raided its offices in the Central American country looking for evidence of alleged abuse of migrant children. “We have been...

Repatriated South African apartheid-era artworks on display to celebrate 30 years of democracy

Apr. 26, 2024 01:41 AM EDT

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A selection of South African artworks produced during the country’s apartheid era which ended up in foreign art collections is on display in Johannesburg to mark 30 years since the country's transition to democracy in 1994. Most of the artworks were taken out...

Portugal marks the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution army coup that brought democracy

Apr. 25, 2024 18:40 PM EDT

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Military vehicles and red carnations returned to the streets and squares of downtown Lisbon on Thursday as Portugal reenacted dramatic moments from the army coup that brought democracy to the country 50 years ago. Tens of thousands of people attended the...

Chinese student given 9-month prison sentence for harassing person posting democracy leaflets

Apr. 24, 2024 17:49 PM EDT

BOSTON (AP) — A former Berklee College of Music student from China was sentenced Wednesday to nine months in prison for stalking and threatening a person who posted a flyer in support of democracy in the Asian country, authorities said. The leaflet that was posted on the campus in...

$8 billion US military aid package to Taiwan will 'boost confidence' in region: president-elect

Apr. 23, 2024 05:45 AM EDT

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A $8 billion defense package approved by the U.S. House of Representatives over the weekend will “strengthen the deterrence against authoritarianism in the West Pacific ally chain,” Taiwan’s President-elect Lai Ching-te said Tuesday, in a reference to key rival China. ...

In Modi's India, opponents and journalists feel the squeeze ahead of election

Apr. 15, 2024 02:23 AM EDT

NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government are increasingly wielding strong-arm tactics to subdue political opponents and critics of the ruling Hindu-nationalist party ahead of the nationwide elections that begin this week. A decade into power, and on...

Thai foreign minister urges Myanmar's military to avoid violent attack on border town its army lost

Apr. 12, 2024 11:34 AM EDT

MAE SOT, Thailand (AP) — Thailand’s foreign minister on Friday said he urged Myanmar’s military authorities not to violently respond to its army’s loss of an important border trading town to its opponents, and that so far they seemed to be exercising restraint. Parnpree...

Myanmar's ethnic Karen guerrillas claim to have seized the last army base defending key border town

Apr. 11, 2024 07:50 AM EDT

BANGKOK (AP) — Guerrillas from the Karen ethnic minority on Thursday claimed to have captured the last of the army’s outposts in Myawaddy township in eastern Myanmar, virtually clearing the way for them to take over the town of Myawaddy, the major crossing point for trade with Thailand. ...

Study finds voters skeptical about fairness of elections. Many favor a strong, undemocratic leader

Apr. 11, 2024 00:07 AM EDT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Voters in 19 countries, including in three of the world’s largest democracies, are widely skeptical about whether their political elections are free and fair, and many favor a strong, undemocratic leader, according to a study released Thursday. The...

China's Xi meets with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov in show of support against Western democracies

Apr. 09, 2024 22:20 PM EDT

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Tuesday in a sign of mutual support and shared opposition to Western democracies amid Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. “We would like to express our highest appreciation and admiration for...