The same-sex referendum that took place in Ireland yesterday is very significant. This is not just because 84.16% of the population identifies as Roman Catholic. It’s not because of the matter either: seventeen countries (eleven of which are European) have…
Continue reading Of rights and referendums: Ireland votes – Junior Sikabwe
You can read an introductory post to Krijn’s series on liberal political philosophy here. Thomas Hobbes was an early modern English philosopher. In his treatise Of liberty and Necessity, Hobbes defines individual liberty as follows: “Liberty is the absence of…
As its name implies, one of the fundamental ideas that underpin liberalism is liberty. However, as with ideas underpinning other political philosophies, people don’t always mean the same thing when they use the term. This is not unimportant. Different ways…
Let’s start things off with a cliché: a week is a long time in politics *is sick all over self *. But really it is. I mean about a week ago us British liberals were all waiting around for something…
Continue reading Explaining the #LibDemFightback to our international friends – By Bobby Dean
The cab ride was marked by a sense of excitement and a concerted effort in trying to remember each other’s names. It was Mellaquez’ first time in Cape Town, and her eyes filled with delight as she peered through the…
The September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center was an attack on a symbol of freedom and cooperation. Just a few days after the attack, the Security Council on behalf of the United Nations pushed through new terror legislation…
Continue reading The War Against Terror is a Bigger Threat than Terrorism Itself – Eirik Natlandsmyr
The political debate on prohibition against drugs has changed more, and faster, than most people could have anticipated. Tolerating others’ use of substances you would never even touch is liberal in its essence. Every human has the right to decide…
Continue reading International Drug Ban Fuels Terrorist Groups – Anniken Karlyme Wullum
Today, millions of people are fleeing their homes due to war and conflicts, living in temporary camps with no idea what the future will hold. Behind the numbers, there are refugees with worries no one deserve to bear and hopes…
In Part One IFLRY Vice President Bobby Dean recounted his time with young politicians in Cape Town, South Africa. In this part two, he has travelled across the country to the poorer rural communities to witness the work of Restless Development’s…
Continue reading Making Mandela’s Rainbow Nation A Reality (Part Two) – Bobby Dean
It’s Sunday night and I’m settling in to sleep in a familiar place – a plane seat. I don’t have ‘wanderlust’ – whatever that discomforting hipsterised term means – but my involvement in international issues has put me on a…
Continue reading Making Mandela’s Rainbow Nation A Reality – Bobby Dean
