2024 Martial Law in South Korea — The Crossroads Between Democratic Regression or Proof of Strong Democracy

2024 Martial Law in South Korea — The Crossroads Between Democratic Regression or Proof of Strong Democracy

Jeong-In Yun

On December 3, 2024, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law in a sudden TV address. The declaration of martial law, the first since the country's democratization in 1987, came as a shock to South Korean society, which had experienced martial law under authoritarian regimes and military dictatorships in the past.

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Citizens’ Assemblies in Germany

Citizens’ Assemblies in Germany

Kristof HEIDEMANN

Largely unnoticed by the public eye, citizens’ assemblies are growing into an increasingly tested format of civil participation in Germany. This post provides an overview of the legal and political context, in order to explain why CAs are on the verge of becoming another contested issue in the increasingly partisan German public discourse…

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Sounding the Alarm, and the Italian Regions’ Limited Ability to Counter Democratic Regression

Sounding the Alarm, and the Italian Regions’ Limited Ability to Counter Democratic Regression

Petra MALFERTHEINER & Elisabeth ALBER

Cultural hegemony lies at the heart of Meloni’s coalition government and its policymaking that continues to reshape the public space vis-à-vis immigration, sexual minorities, cultural institutions, and the freedom in academia and the media…

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Unified Government but Divided Polity? The 2024 U.S. Elections and the Potential Counterweight of the States

Unified Government but Divided Polity? The 2024 U.S. Elections and the Potential Counterweight of the States

Jared SONNICKSEN

Despite the many controversies of his first presidency (2017-2021) – most notoriously the January 6, 2021 ‘storming of the Capitol’ with his refusal to recognize the election results, recurring scandals and more – Donald Trump was reelected as the 47th President of the United States…

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Renforcer les droits de l'homme en Europe : le rôle essentiel des pouvoirs locaux dans l'exécution des arrêts de la Cour européenne des droits de l'homme

Renforcer les droits de l'homme en Europe : le rôle essentiel des pouvoirs locaux dans l'exécution des arrêts de la Cour européenne des droits de l'homme

Natalia MISHYNA

Cet article examine comment les pouvoirs locaux et régionaux en Europe, bien qu'ayant un rôle facultatif dans l'exécution des arrêts de la Cour européenne des droits de l'homme (CEDH), peuvent jouer un rôle crucial dans l'application quotidienne des droits de l'homme…

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The 2024 Elections to the Austrian National Council: Huge Shifts, but also a New Era?

The 2024 Elections to the Austrian National Council: Huge Shifts, but also a New Era?

Anna GAMPER

On 29 September 2024, elections to the National Council took place in Austria. The National Council is the first chamber of the Austrian Federal Parliament, whose 183 seats are elected by the federal citizens according to the principles of equal, direct, personal, secret and free suffrage…

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Constitutional Repair in Poland: The Venice Commission’s Opinion on the Draft Law Amending the Law on the National Council of the Judiciary

Constitutional Repair in Poland:  The Venice Commission’s Opinion on the Draft Law Amending  the Law on the National Council of the Judiciary

Francesco BIAGI

The Venice Commission is often involved in transition processes. During the Nineties, this body played an important role in assisting Central and Eastern European countries in the democratization processes following the collapse of the Communist regime…

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