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Libyans Enthusiastic About Democratic Transition, Worried About Transparency in Government

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Libyans celebrate Liberation Day in Benghazi. Photo by Megan Doherty, NDI resident program officer.

Most Libyans are eager to exercise their newfound political freedoms and participate in shaping their country’s future, but they feel disadvantaged by their lack of exposure to democratic practices and have concerns about security and their economy, according to new public opinion research undertaken by NDI.

Hans Zimmer Collaborates with Roma Musicians on New Film Score

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Hans Zimmer visits with Roma musicians in Zehra, Slovakia.

When Academy Award-winning composer Hans Zimmer set out to write the score for the new Sherlock Holmes film, he knew he wanted to collaborate with Roma musicians. With NDI’s assistance, Zimmer visited Roma towns and settlements, primarily in Eastern Slovakia. Roma, sometimes called Gypsies, are virtually unrepresented in government, and therefore enjoy very few of the benefits other Europeans take for granted.

Afghan Internship Graduate Starts Her Own Youth Program

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Atifa Safi

Working as an intern in the Afghan parliament in 2007, Atifa Safi helped members and parliamentary committees write reports, take minutes, conduct research and analyze data.  She had the opportunity to contribute to the legislative process while seeing the workings of government close up, and the lawmakers benefited from the help that she and other interns provided. When she graduated from the program when it ended in 2008, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she could do more for young people.

Academy Award Winner Explores Living Conditions of Roma in Visit to Slovakia

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Hans Zimmer visits with Roma musicians in Zehra, Slovakia.

As a boy in Germany, Academy Award-winning composer Hans Zimmer heard about the “romantic music and fairy tales of Gypsy life.” But he wasn’t satisfied with the stories and wanted to learn more about the Roma people and their plight.

An opportunity came last year when Zimmer, a long-time human rights advocate, heard about the deportation of Roma migrants from France and wanted to help. His interest led him to NDI, which has been working for the past decade to empower Roma activists in Central and Eastern Europe.

NDI President Kenneth Wollack Returns to Burma, Meets Again with Aung San Suu Kyi

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NDI President Kenneth Wollack visits with a family at an HIV/AIDS center in Burma.

NDI President Kenneth Wollack traveled to Burma in June to meet with Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who he first met on a visit there 16 years ago.

In an interview, Wollack reports that little in the country has changed since the adoption of an undemocratic constitution in 2008 and sham elections last November. Still, Wollack says that Aung San Suu Kyi remains the unflappable and optimistic leader he met on his last visit in 1995 and it’s clear that her party, the NLD, is alive and rebuilding.

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