Kristin Surak

Nov 17, 2024 | jacobin.com | Kristin Surak

In a global year of elections, Japan’s long-serving Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has suffered its second-worst result on record. The snap poll on October 27 was intended to secure the mandate of Ishiba Shigeru, selected prime minister just a few weeks before. Instead, his party was trounced. The LDP lost 68 seats, reducing it from a secure majority of 259 parliamentarians into a struggling minority power. Its coalition partner, Komeito, fared even worse.

Feb 8, 2024 | lawfaremedia.org | Kristin Surak

Published by The Lawfare Institute in Cooperation With Some people call it "investor citizenship" while others label it a "passport for sale" scheme. Either way, the last few decades have seen the global citizenship industry grow and evolve in ways that both reflect and impact issues around national sovereignty, tax regimes, international business, and global inequities.

Dec 12, 2023 | foreignaffairs.com | Atossa Araxia Abrahamian |Kristin Surak |Thomas Graham |Elliott Abrams

In This Review In This Review The Golden Passport: Global Mobility for Millionaires In October 2023, an investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Network revealed that a former Afghan intelligence chief accused of human rights violations, Saddam Hussein’s top nuclear scientist, and a high-ranking colonel under the Libyan despot Muammar al-Qaddafi all had something curious in common: they were compatriots of the Commonwealth of Dominica.

Oct 1, 2023 | jacobin.com | Kristin Surak

In October 2017, the tiny country of Montenegro was abuzz. Nestled in the mountains along the Adriatic coast and with a mere population of 620,000, it’s a place that has been overlooked by many. Formerly a part of Yugoslavia, it remained an appendage of Serbia until it gained full independence in 2006. Given the country’s size, it didn’t take much to create a lot of hype for the Global Citizen Forum (GCF).

Sep 8, 2023 | wsj.com | Kristin Surak

By Kristin SurakSept. 8, 2023 1:00 pm ETIn the Western world, the idea of citizenship is usually celebrated for its promise of equality. Even in societies divided by class and status, citizenship enables disadvantaged segments of the population to obtain basic rights. Yet access to citizenship itself remains fundamentally unequal.