June 4, 2023

Supporting Democracy in Hard Places

It was wonderful to join this event, hosted by The Carnegie Endowment, with Under Secretary Zeya, Scott Worden, Aarya Nijat & Patrick Quirk, moderated by Frances Brown. I underscored that the one non-negotiable aspect of Sudanese democracy is the Sudanese people themselves – but that the international community’s actions put a thumb on the scale […]

Facebook strikes deal in Australia

I spoke with Lana Zak from CBS News about the amendments to the Australian media bargaining code and what Facebook’s news blackout means for its users beyond Australia’s borders. You can access the interview here. I don’t support the law the Australian government is trying to pass – I think there are better ways to […]

Bashir and the ICC

Most of the media got ahead of this story in initial reporting. I spoke with Jen Kirby at Vox about what the Sudanese transitional government’s statement on the ICC means. “Cautious optimism is the name of the game,” Hamilton said. “It’s nowhere near a done deal, but I think the fact that the conversation is happening […]

Bashir is out

Today I spoke with Marco Werman at Public Radio International: “I think one of the challenges for people to understand is that this is not just about who is the individual in charge of Sudan. Sudan’s real challenge and what the protesters have been fighting for is for a state that will actually represent all […]

Burundi Quits International Criminal Court

Last week I spoke to the NYT Africa Bureau Chief, the inimitable Jina Moore, about Burundi’s departure from the ICC: “I think there is an ongoing concern about the court’s ability to work in countries in Africa,” said Rebecca Hamilton, an assistant professor of law at American University who previously worked in the International Criminal […]

Human Rights under the Trump Administration

Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, has said that human rights is just one value that can be traded off in the service of an “America First” approach. President Trump has praised President el-Sisi in the face of ongoing human rights abuses in Egypt, called President Erdogan to congratulate him for seizing additional power in the […]

Is the Australian government enabling crimes against humanity in its offshore detention centers?

I just spoke with Marco Werman at Public Radio International about why I hope the International Criminal Court will take a look at Australia’s offshore detention facilities and it’s inhumane policies toward asylum seekers. Listen here and read the associated story by Carol Hills.

Declaring Genocide

It was such a pleasure to speak with one of my favorite radio shows, On The Media from WNYC, about the consequences of Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent declaration of genocide in relation to ISIS. You can listen to the segment here.

The G-Word Paradox

On March 17, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry declared that the Islamic State was responsible for genocide against groups including Yazidis, Christians, and Shiites. The statement came following pressure from Congress and after the House of Representatives issued a unanimousresolution earlier in the week drawing the same conclusion. “[The Islamic State] kills Christians because they are […]

Global Advocacy: How useful are #hashtags and “likes”?

I spoke with Amy Costello at Tiny Spark podcasts about global advocacy movements and the challenges of mobilizing the goodwill of volunteers in a way that translates into real change for the people they are advocating on behalf of. You can listen to the podcast here. And more generally I’d encourage folks to check out […]