Democracy Lab Weekly Brief, June 15, 2012

[Editor’s note: Alert readers of the Brief recently brought a technical problem to our attention. It’s now been fixed, but we wanted to take the occasion to let you know that we welcome your feedback.]

As the political turmoil in Egypt grows, Mara Revkin and Yussuf Auf analyze the reasons for the gridlock around efforts to draw up a new constitution.

Writing on the Egyptian economy, Peter Passell suggests a way to reform an increasingly unworkable system of subsidies.

Mohamed El Dahshan looks at an ominous military degree that has gone largely unnoticed amid the breaking news from Cairo, and also takes the measure of the government’s latest effort to whip up anti-foreigner sentiment.

Hanna Hindstrom assails Burmese media reporting on the wave of ethnic violence in Burma, noting how many reporters are using their newfound freedom to indulge in xenophobia.

Min Zin explores how the conflict benefits the military junta and hinders the maneuverability of the democratic opposition.

Christian Caryl explains why hopes that Russia might soften its support for Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria are unlikely to be borne out.

Endy Bayuni explains why Indonesians believe their country is destined for great-power status.

And Jackee Batanda defends Uganda against a derogatory message from the Spanish prime minster.

This week’s recommended reads:

Nicholas Pelham reports for The New York Review of Books on the continuing political turbulence in Libya in the run-up to elections next month.

Brian Whitmore and Kirill Kobrin of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and scholar Mark Galeotti, analyze the continuing standoff between the Kremlin and the Russian opposition. (The photo above shows this week’s March of Millions in Moscow.)

Reporters Without Borders documents the threats facing free media and journalists in post-coup Mali.

The Council on Foreign Relations explains how Egyptian men are trying to challenge sexual harassment in their country.

Writing for the Jamestown Foundation, David Marples peers behind the façade of Aleksandr Lukashenko’s regime to determine the extent of support for economic (and perhaps political) reform among important players in Belarus.

Zahar Koretsky writes for Transitions Online on the big ticket decisions that may determine Moldova’s territorial future.

Frederic Wehrey of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace offers an update on the failed Arab Spring revolution in Bahrain.

And TheAtlantic.com presents a gallery of gripping images documenting the devastation caused by the civil war in Syria.