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Recently, Baptiste Charvin wrote on this blog that the right to abortion has become the subject of political instrumentalization in France. In his view, it illustrates a general phenomenon of 'constitutional desacralization' and underlines the division the French people are experiencing, 'despite being governed by a Constitution that enshrines a set of values that should be shared by all.' I argue that the French parliamentary debate on the right to abortion is anything but a phenomenon of recent political opportunism. Instead, it reflects – for once – a majority opinion, not the division of French society.

Last Sunday, August 13, Argentina held elections to determine the candidates who will run in next October's national presidential elections. In a surprising turn of events, the far-right candidate Javier Milei, an outsider that started in politics around 2019, surged ahead in the preliminary elections, sending shockwaves through Argentina's political landscape which has traditionally favoured left-wing populism. In this blogpost, I argue that disillusionment with political establishment, extremely high inflation and crime are core reasons driving Milei's surprise success at the ballot box.

Across the European continent, far-right parties are soaring in opinion polls. As the far right continues establishing its presence on the mainstream political stage, the urgency to address its rise and normalisation cannot be overstated. But which strategies are effective when and why?

In a pivotal judgment delivered by the Grand Chamber, the European Court of Human Rights held that the conviction of a former teacher Yüksel Yalcinkaya violated Articles 6,7 and 11 of the Convention. The applicant Yalcinkaya was a teacher who was dismissed with an emergency decree enacted during the state of emergency rule between 2016 and 2018 and was subsequently prosecuted and convicted for his use of the ByLock app and for his membership in a teachers' union and an association which were also closed down with an emergency decree. In Erdogan's ever more repressive Turkey, usage of said app or membership in organizations and unions may lead to arrest. Especially anything that appears remotely related to the oppositional Gulen movement carries the risk of persecution.

Online hate speech is a topic that has gained importance in recent years. The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) made an important ruling in this context on 15 May 2023 in Sanchez v. France. From a democratic theory and individual rights' perspective, I would endorse the first decision because it tackles the so-called "silencing" and "desensitization effect" of hate speech. The second decision, however, runs the risk of adversely affecting free political debate, especially when individual politicians are called upon to delete comments by third parties.

By Amélie Jaques-Apke. As Europe begins to emerge from a pandemic, we begin to evaluate emerging
political damages. Now more than ever, we must understand how radical right populist parties design their message toward vulnerable, crisis-shaken populations. The objective of this study is to reflect critically on the interplay between democracy and populism, exploring recent discursive developments of
the parties Vox and The League and its power relations, which are linked to the exogenous shocks provoked
by the pandemic. The author used qualitative techniques of content analysis, and conducted interviews with scholars and political actors, and group discussions with local actors for several months.

Frequent violations of human, labor, and environmental rights continue to impact supply chains globally, with notable prevalence in the Global South, but also in the Global North. The German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (SCDDA, in German: Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz [LkSG]), enacted in 2023, represents significant progress in upholding rights within the context of socio-ecological transformation across value chains. However, the law faces challenges, particularly in terms of its prospective enforcement and the absence of a cohesive link between social and ecological rights. This article provides a commentary and argues that addressing these issues should be a priority.
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Lillie Hafner



Lillie Hafner hat ihren Bachelor in Politikwissenschaft an der Universität Münster und University of Twente absolviert und war als Praktikantin am PRIF bei Hendrik Simon und Patrick Flamm tätig. Sie beschäftigt sich mit Konflikten in der sozial-ökologischen Transformation und der Schnittstelle von Migration, Grenzen und Digitalisierung. // Lillie Hafner completed her Bachelor's degree in Political Science at the University of Münster and the University of Twente and worked as an intern at PRIF with Hendrik Simon and Patrick Flamm. She focuses on conflicts in the socio-ecological transformation as well as the intersection of migration, borders, and digitalization.

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Der Beitrag A Gap between Social and Ecological Rights: A Commentary after One Year of the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act erschien zuerst auf PRIF BLOG.

Seit den Terroranschlägen vom 7. Oktober 2023 und der anhaltenden Eskalation des Nahostkonfliktes kommt es auf anti-israelischen Demonstrationen wiederholt zu Anzeigen wegen Aufrufen zur Gewalt und Volkverhetzung. Dieser Trend ist bei genauerem Hinsehen gar nicht so neu: Bereits seit längerem gibt es Stimmen, die vor einem islamisierten Antisemitismus in Deutschland warnen. Eine entsprechende gesellschaftliche Debatte gestaltet sich jedoch als schwierig, weil rechte Akteure die Situation nutzen, um Muslim*innen und Geflüchtete unter einen Generalverdacht zu stellen. Der Beitrag beleuchtet die daraus resultierenden verzerrten Kommunikationsbedingungen sowie die Genese des islamisierten Antisemitismus und präsentiert empirische Erkenntnisse über seine Verbreitung und Ursachen.
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Cemal Öztürk



Dr. des. Cemal Öztürk ist wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter von Prof. Dr. Susanne Pickel am Lehrstuhl für Vergleichende Politikwissenschaft an der Universität Duisburg-Essen und Assistent im BMBF geförderten Projektes "Radikaler Islam – Radikaler Anti-Islam" (RIRA). Seine Forschung dreht sich um die sozialpsychologischen Triebkräfte gruppenbezogener Vorurteile und Ressentiments und ihre politischen und gesellschaftlichen Folgen (z. B. Rückwirkungen auf die politische Kultur, die Wahl rechtspopulistischer Parteien, Rechtsextremismus und Radikalisierung). // Dr. des. Cemal Öztürk is a research assistant to Prof. Dr. Susanne Pickel at the Chair of Comparative Politics at the University of Duisburg-Essen. University of Duisburg-Essen and assistant in the BMBF-funded project "Radical Islam - Radical Anti-Islam" (RIRA). His research focuses on the socio-psychological drivers of prejudices and resentments and their political and social consequences (e.g. effects on political culture, right-wing populist parties, right-wing extremism and radicalization).

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Der Beitrag Der islamisierte Antisemitismus: Aufgebauschtes Schreckgespenst oder bagatellisiertes Ressentiment? erschien zuerst auf PRIF BLOG.

When Rodrigo Duterte assumed the presidency of the Philippines in 2016, he pushed a campaign against illegal drugs that resulted in thousands of suspects being killed by law enforcers. Parliament appeared entirely ineffective in opposing the extensive human rights abuses during the Presidents anti-drug campaign. This Spotlight examines the wider working logic of Philippine democracy that makes Philippine parliament into a subservient accomplice of any determined administration of the day, even if this means going along with severe human rights violations.
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Peter Kreuzer



Dr. Peter Kreuzer ist Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter und Projektleiter am PRIF. Sein Fokus liegt auf politischer Gewalt in den Philippinen und maritimen Konflikten im Südchinesischen Meer. // Dr Peter Kreuzer is a Senior Researcher at PRIF. He focuses on political violence in the Philippines and maritime conflicts in the South China Sea.

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Der Beitrag Failing in Control. Legislative weakness in the face of a strongman president in the Philippines erschien zuerst auf PRIF BLOG.

In January 2023, Italy's new government adopted a reform that heavily curtailed immigrant rights to speed up return procedures. Between September and October, several judgments issued by the Catania Tribunal declared the reform in violation of EU law. The judgments led to backlash, with PM Meloni and other members of the government accusing them of being politically motivated. While such political attacks on judges must always be condemned, they are particularly unwarranted given that the Catania Tribunal's judges were correct in finding the new Italian border procedures incompatible with EU law.

In the United States, European reforms of the digital economy are often met with criticism. Repeatedely, eminent American voices called for an end to Europe's "techno-nationalism."
However, this common argument focusing on digital protectionism is plausible, yet overly simplistic. Instead, this blog post argues that European digital regulations reflect a host of values that are consistent with the broader European economic and political project. The EU's digital agenda reflects its manifest commitment to fundamental rights, democracy, fairness, and redistribution, as well as its respect for the rule of law. These normative commitments, and the laws implementing those commitments, can be viewed in aggregate as Europe's digital constitution.

Conflicts over climate and energy policy, security and geopolitical dimensions of global decarbonisation, or human and environmental rights violations in global value chains: The current socio-ecological transformation is causing new and exacerbating existing socio-political conflicts that will characterise the 21st century. The new working group on socio-ecological transformation conflicts, which introduces some of its fields of research in this blog series, brings together existing expertise on these conflicts at PRIF.
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Hendrik Simon



Hendrik Simon ist wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am PRIF im Programmbereich "Transnationale Politik". Er forscht zu Normen in der internationalen Politik und der Rolle des Völkerrechts. // Hendrik Simon is a Researcher at PRIF's research department "Transnational Politics". He researches norms in international politics and the role of international law.

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Der Beitrag Socio-ecological Transformation Conflicts: A Central Field of Conflict and Research in the 21st Century erschien zuerst auf PRIF BLOG.

Across North America, May 5 is a day to commemorate the thousands of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit, and gender diverse people. Beyond giving space for remembrance and mourning, May 5 is connected to the aims of building knowledge, raising public awareness, stimulating solidarity and underlining the need for action to end the disproportionate deadly violence. While politics and the judicial system are reminded on this day to deliver rights and justice, another important factor for change should also gain attention: the collective imagery of the Indigenous needs to be decolonized to transform the systemic structures of violence.
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Sabine Mannitz



Dr. Sabine Mannitz leitet den Programmbereich "Glokale Verflechtungen", ist Vorstandsmitglied am PRIF und PI im Forschungszentrum "Transformationen politischer Gewalt" (TraCe). Sie forscht u. a. über Prozesse des Wandels politischer Kultur, soziale Identität und Erinnerungskultur/-politik. // Dr Sabine Mannitz is head of the research department "Glocal Junctions", a member of PRIF's executive board and PI in the Research Center "Transformations of Political Violence" (TraCe). Her research fields include processes of change in political culture, social identity and practices of remembrance/remembrance politics.

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Der Beitrag Time for True Stories: Stereotypes Absolve Gendered Violence against Indigenous in Canada erschien zuerst auf PRIF BLOG.

Ensuring the integrity of elections is a foundational concern for any democratic state. Yet, it faces a grave challenge in Poland, emanating from the Chamber of Extraordinary Control and Public Affairs of the Supreme Court. Created in 2018 following controversial changes to the national judicial system and tasked with reviewing the validity of parliamentary elections, the Chamber fails to meet the essential criteria of an independent court. Confirmed by rulings of the European Court of Human Rights and the Supreme Court itself, the Chamber's flawed origin and staffing, dependent on political influence and in departure from established rules of law, undermines its capacity to authenticate the fairness and legitimacy of elections. This echoes beyond Poland's borders as well, since the Chamber's defective status fails to meet European standards of effective judicial protection, thus raising concerns in the context of European integration. This blog delves into the Chamber's position, examines its role in validating electoral process and its impact on the democratic legitimacy of Poland's Parliament.

Research on extremism and related phenomena such as radicalization or terrorism is emotionally demanding and can even become dangerous, in part because it frequently means engaging with intense, and at times violent, societal conflict. The most recent escalation in the Israel-Palestine conflict is a poignant example of this, in which researchers specialized in antisemitism, Islamophobia, or Islamist and right-wing extremism are expected to keep up with fast-paced developments while simultaneously navigating the emotional impact of unfolding violence. This blog post highlights the difficulties researchers face in this field and proposes suggestions for addressing these challenges at the institutional and structural levels.
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Reem Ahmed



Reem Ahmed is a Researcher at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (IFSH) and a PhD candidate at the University of Hamburg. Her research focuses on extremism, (counter-)terrorism, and platform regulation. She is currently part of a research project team on social and political practices in dealing with Islamism in Germany (KURI). | Twitter: @RAhmed105

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Der Beitrag How can research on topics surrounding radicalization, extremism, and terrorism be safe and socially sustainable? erschien zuerst auf PRIF BLOG.