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Referendums put citizens back at the centre of the political stage. As instruments of direct democracy, they may foster citizens' involvement and legitimise important decisions. Referendums have been on the rise in Europe and elsewhere in the world in recent decades, and have become a recurrent feature of European politics. Despite the increased interest in some Member States, however, referendums remain controversial. On the one hand, advocates of direct democracy stress that referendums can foster ...

The contemporary federal state of Canada was formed in 1867, when the Province of Canada merged through confederation with two other British colonies in North America, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Canada's 1867 constitution sets out the rules by which the country is governed and divides government responsibilities into three separate branches: parliament, executive and judiciary. In addition to being a federation, Canada is also a representative democracy and a constitutional monarchy. Queen Elizabeth ...

Understanding definitions of terrorism

Kort overzicht 06-11-2015

The international community remains divided over a universally acceptable definition of terrorism. Despite broad consensus that the threat of terrorism needs to be addressed urgently, the positions adopted by individual countries, regional and international organisations have resulted in a patchwork of approaches. This is primarily due to diverging views on what constitutes terrorism, as opposed to exercising peoples' right to self-determination, as enshrined in the UN Charter.

Situations of occupation are often among the most difficult conflicts to resolve, in particular if the occupied territory is also illegally annexed. Legally speaking, an illegally annexed territory is occupied. Third parties (like the EU) have an obligation to not recognise an illegal annexation and to not assist in the continued occupation and annexation. An occupying power has limited authority over the occupied territory under international humanitarian law (IHL), but has nevertheless an obligation ...

Moldova's political landscape reflects the country's deep split between EU and Russia. The main outcome of the parliamentary elections in November 2014 was a narrow victory for the pro-EU parties. The new minority government, appointed on 18 February, will continue Chisinau's European course, but remains fragile in light of persistent internal problems, the strengthened pro-Russian opposition as well as increasing economic, political and military pressure from Moscow.

The present study examines the human rights impacts of the extractive industries on indigenous peoples worldwide. It finds that there continue to be significant human rights risks associated with mining, oil and gas extraction falling disproportionately on indigenous peoples. It argues that the growing demand for non-renewable resources and the need to explore and exploit resources in ever more invasive ways suggest that such activities are likely to impinge even more on the lands of indigenous communities ...