Post-colonial African leaders. Quite an eclectic bunch of statesmen that have ranged from military dictators to pan-African philosophers to global icons. Recent events have put two of them in the spotlight.

You wouldn't consider the Kingdom of Swaziland a hotbed for civil unrest, however this tiny nation of just over one million people has made the headlines for very important reasons.

It has been a long time since the Democracy blog has been active but not to worry, Why Democracy? is still going to deliver fresh insightful takes on democracy. 

Today's blog provides a snapshot of global events and what has been written about them. And so, in no particular order...

Dodgy elections in Iran have given rise to social upheaval in that country. The images and video broadcast by the news networks all highlight the deep resentment of the Iranian people and their desire for change.

If you have not been following the Iranian election debacle have a look at these articles and blogs...

Political analyst and Harvard professor, Joseph Nye, provides his thoughts on the changes in American foreign policy regarding the promotion of democracy. Definately worth a read.

I'm an optimist. Well, I try to be, but given events over the past few weeks I've had to carefully rethink the merits of believing that recent global events are just blips on a windy road toward mature democracies.