WDC

Curbing corruption in Armenia was one of the main goals of the new Armenian government before the velvet revolution in 2018. According to Transparency International, Armenian Corruption Perception Index has increased by 7 points and the rank has improved by 28 positions in 2019 compared to 2018. What were the social and economic factors keeping the high level of corruption in the country? Recent empirical studies have predominantly looked at antecedents of corruption from a macro level. Based on the analysis of three datasets comprising of individual-level surveys taken over a three-year period in Armenia, the study argues that social norms, personal wealth, and the high reliability of corrupt transactions impact an individual’s decision to be involved in corruption.

Over the past five years, a growing number of Xinjiang Uighurs have been sent to re-education camps by the Chinese government, most without trials or release dates.  Estimates have reached as high as one million detainees.   The Chinese government has framed these camps as schools that attack terrorist beliefs and give Uighurs the work and life skills necessary to thrive in a modern economy.  It has received very little pressure or public condemnation from its Central Asian neighbors, from Muslim countries, or from its trading partners in the developed world.  This human rights crisis raises questions central to the role and practice of diplomacy.  What justification is there for bringing foreign diplomatic pressure to bear on issues that a country defines as central to its identity and existence?  What do we know about the success of different types of advocacy, whether through diplomatic channels, pressure from international organizations, or NGO-led protest? To what extent does the crisis in Xinjiang affect the stability of Central Asia, or the fate of separatist movements in Tibet, Hong Kong, and Taiwan?