Senegal is a moderately decentralized republic dominated by a strong executive branch. In March 2012 voters elected Macky Sall to succeed Abdoulaye Wade as president for a seven-year term. In July 2012 Sall's coalition won a majority of seats in the National Assembly. Local and international observers viewed the elections as largely free and fair. Authorities generally maintained effective control over the security forces. Security forces committed human rights abuses. The most significant human rights problems included long pretrial detention, overcrowding in prisons, and corruption. Other...

Tunisia is a constitutional republic with a multi-party parliamentary system and a government appointed after the January 2011 revolution ousted former president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali. The interim government of Prime Minister Ali Laarayedh took office on February 27. In October 2011 citizens chose in free and fair elections a Constituent Assembly that began work on a draft constitution in October 2012. The assembly was also tasked with preparing a new electoral law in preparation for the election of a constitutional government. Authorities failed at times to maintain effective control over...

The Kingdom of the Netherlands, which includes the Netherlands, Aruba, Curacao, and Sint Maarten, is a constitutional monarchy. The government of the Netherlands (the term used to designate, inclusively, the European part of the state and the Caribbean islands of Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius) has a bicameral parliament; the country's 12 provincial councils elect a first chamber and the second chamber is elected by popular vote. A prime minister and a cabinet representing the governing political parties exercise executive authority. Aruba, Curacao, and Sint Maarten have unicameral...

The Gambia is a multi-party democratic republic. In 2011 voters re-elected President Alhaji Yahya Jammeh to a fourth term in a peaceful, orderly election; however, international observers criticized it as neither free nor fair. President Jammeh's party, the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC), continued to dominate the political landscape, winning an overwhelming majority of National Assembly seats in the parliamentary elections in March 2012 and in the local government elections held on April 4, 2013. Six of the seven opposition parties boycotted or otherwise did not...

Thailand is a constitutional monarchy. The King serves as head of state and has traditionally exerted strong influence. A coalition government led by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her Puea Thai (For Thais) Party came to power in 2011 following National Assembly lower house elections that were generally viewed as free and fair. Authorities maintained effective control over the security forces. However, some members of the security forces were involved in human rights abuses. The most persistent human rights problems included: abuses by government security forces and local defense...

The United Republic of Tanzania is a multi-party republic consisting of the mainland region and the semiautonomous Zanzibar archipelago, whose main islands are Unguja and Pemba. The union is headed by a president, who is also the head of government. Its unicameral legislative body is the National Assembly (parliament). Zanzibar, although part of the union, has its own government with a president, court system, and legislature, and exercises considerable autonomy. Tanzania held its fourth multi-party general elections in 2010 in which voters on mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar elected a union...

Tajikistan is an authoritarian state that President Emomali Rahmon and his supporters, drawn mainly from one region of the country, dominated politically. The constitution provides for a multi-party political system, but the government obstructed political pluralism. The November 6 presidential election lacked pluralism, genuine choice, and did not meet international standards. Security forces reported to civilian authorities. The most significant human rights problems included torture and abuse of detainees and other persons by security forces; repression of political activism and...

Taiwan is governed by a president and a parliament selected in multi-party elections. In 2012 voters re-elected President Ma Ying-jeou of the Kuomintang Party (KMT) to a second four-year term in an election considered free and fair. Authorities maintained effective control over the security forces. Security forces did not commit human rights abuses. Principal human rights problems reported during the year were labor exploitation of migrant workers by fishing companies, exploitation of domestic workers by brokerage agencies, and official corruption. As of May authorities indicted 573...

Syria is a republic ruled by the authoritarian regime of President Bashar Asad. The president makes key decisions with counsel from a small number of security advisors, ministers, and senior members of the ruling Baath (Arab Socialist Renaissance) Party. The constitution mandates the primacy of Baath Party leaders in state institutions and society. President Asad and party leaders dominate all three branches of government. A 2007 yes-or-no referendum that was neither free nor fair by international standards confirmed Asad as president for his second seven-year term. Parliamentary elections...

The Swiss Confederation is a constitutional republic with a federal structure. Legislative authority resides in a bicameral parliament (Federal Assembly), consisting of the 46-member Council of States and the 200-member National Council. Free and fair elections occurred at both the cantonal and federal levels in 2011. Parliament elects the executive leadership (the seven-member Federal Council) every four years. A coalition of five parties made up the Federal Council. There were 12 political parties represented in the federal government. Security forces reported to civilian authorities....