“From a global perspective, the big story of 2020 was China’s government: its duplicity around COVID-19, the continuing expansion of its surveillance state, and its mass forced incarceration and indoctrination of Uighurs in 380 detention centers across the Xianjing region,” writes Brad Lips in this op-ed for the Wall Street Journal. “China is flexing its muscles in Hong Kong unchecked. It is time the rest of the world stood up for the norms of free societies, including free speech and the rule of law.”

Like many government responses to the pandemic, India’s state and central governments inserted themselves in the agricultural sector with relief-oriented trade practices. The adverse effects emanating from such policies, however, have included price manipulation and produce going to waste. The Centre for Civil Society has actively engaged on the issue, helping to bring about several important reforms to liberalize the sector.

When the idea of socialized healthcare reared its ugly head in prospective legislation in Colorado last year, research from the Common Sense Institute (CSI) on its likely economic and moral repercussions helped keep it at bay. While similar legislation may be re-introduced in 2021, CSI’s active commentary on the issue will continue to guide the statewide debate.

COVID-19 has rattled the world economy while also showing how fragile civil liberties can be. Despite (what was billed as) well-intended mandates early on to slow the spread, national and state governments have used the pandemic to expand their influence in the everyday lives of citizens. Mark Littlewood highlights some of the most egregious government intrusions, while providing a roadmap toward economic and civil recovery. His organization, the Institute for Economic Affairs, is accepting entries for their annual Richard Koch Breakthrough Prize through March 2.

Working alongside members of the Honduran congress, Fundación para la Libertad Económica helped usher through a law that will provide seniors with an income tax exemption of up to US$14,000 and will remove arbitrary administrative barriers and fees that penalized seniors for utilizing their tax benefits.

In response to a new tax proposal on cars imported from America, CASE Ukraine published a research report that countered the “support for domestic producers'' narrative that contributes to inflated car prices and relatively few drivers on the road in the country. CASE’s outreach reached over 3 million Ukrainians, and the public pressure and support for more affordable cars contributed to the government canceling the new round of taxes, saving Ukrainian consumers over US$5.5 million annually.

“This idea of feminism is not alien to the freedom movement, it fits in perfectly well,” said Aneetha Warusavitarana of the Advocata Institute (Sri Lanka). “You are talking about an individual’s freedom at the end of the day.” Casey Pifer hosted a discussion of the role and future of women in the liberty movement with Warusavitarana, Linda Kavuka of African Students for Liberty (Kenya), and Felippa Amanta of Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (Indonesia).

Last month, Atlas Network virtually premiered the latest in our short film series, featuring the reform work of our partners. Truth Graf’s inspirational story of addiction, recovery, and renewal comes as the Georgia Center for Opportunity has ushered in a number of meaningful criminal justice reforms that restore the dignity of formerly incarcerated Georgians.

Polarization and populist policies have caused a dramatic economic slowdown in Namibia since 2015. Rowland Brown and the Economic Association of Namibia are standing against cultural biases and establishing new mechanisms to reduce historic barriers that block private citizens from participating in free markets. 

KEFiM helped to pass a landmark bill that drastically increases the autonomy of private schools in Greece. The bill included many of the recommendations in KEFiM’s Greece 2021 Agenda, among them increased academic freedom, the ability to offer unique and innovative services, and curriculum flexibility.