international

When a 23-year-old physiotherapy student was brutally raped and beaten after she got on a public bus in India, the world reacted with appropriate horror. Yet we should not imagine that assaults directed against women using public transportation are unusual or isolated to one nation. In fact, a severe attack similar to the assault in India took place in May 2012 in the hilly region of Nepal, where a 21-year-old Buddhist nun was gang raped on a public bus by five men, including the driver and his staff.

Less horrendous sexual harassment of women taking public transport is part of everyday life in Nepal – and two-thirds of Indian women also say they have experienced such incidents, most of which are not officially reported. Nearly half of Japanese women say they have had at least one such experience, and the problem has also been reported in Hong Kong and Jakarta, Indonesia.   more...

Women make up over half of the world’s population – but they hold only about one-fifth of the seats in national legislatures across the globe. American foreign policies are pushing to increase this important form of women’s representation, using tactics ranging from training programs for female politicians to constitutional assistance and subtle diplomatic pressures. Efforts have stepped up sharply over the past three decades. Back in the 1980s, my research suggests, U.S.-funded efforts to promote democracy around the world paid almost no attention to women’s political engagement. In contrast, today, about ten percent of all such projects deal with women’s rights and political representation. more...

The most important debates in U.S. politics concern the size and role of government, as the polarized parties offer contrasting paths forward. Republicans urge holding the line on taxes and limiting domestic expenditures. Democrats aim to preserve government functions and make some new investments—and call for tax increases to support these choices. As citizens and analysts weigh these options, it helps to put U.S. fiscal policy in cross-national perspective. Compared with other developed countries, the United States has very low taxes, does little to fight inequality, and has an extraordinarily complex tax code that undermines faith in the system. more...