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19 January 2022 Barbados
Prime Minister Mia Mottley reaffirmed the Barbados Labour Party’s (BLP) control of Parliament in a snap general election by winning all 30 seats, according to preliminary reports. Mottley had called an early election to ‘unite’ the country as it emerged from the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, although the opposition had opposed the move owing to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions. Under the guidance of the BLP, the country transitioned to a republic from a constitutional monarchy in November 2021, which had given the ruling party a boost in the polls. However, the incoming administration faced challenges as its tourism-based economy recovered from a severe contraction caused by the pandemic.
15 January 2022 Tonga
A powerful eruption of an undersea volcano located some 65km to the north of Tonga's capital, Nuku‘alofa, on Tongatapu Island, triggered an extensive tsunami and covered many of the country's islands in thick volcanic ash. The extent of the damage in the immediate aftermath of the natural disaster was unclear owing to communications being disrupted (the single underwater cable connecting Tonga to the rest of the world was severed in the eruption), and although initial reports confirmed just three fatalities, it was feared that the actual number of deaths could be considerably higher.
11 January 2022 Kazakhstan
Älihan Smayilov was formally confirmed as new Prime Minister, having initially been appointed to that role in an acting capacity by President Qasım-Jomart Toqaev on 5 January, when the Government of Asqar Mamin (in which Smayilov had been First Deputy Prime Minister) was dismissed. Most of the principal appointments in the new Government remained unchanged. These developments followed the onset of substantial violent unrest from 2 January, initially precipitated by increases in fuel prices, and during which more than 150 people were killed and over 9,000 arrested. Protests were at first concentrated in western regions, but subsequently spread to, in particular, the former capital, Almatı, in the south-east. The President, blaming foreign militants from Afghanistan and the Middle East for instigating the unrest, imposed a nationwide state of emergency and authorized the use of deadly force against protesters. Additionally, several thousand troops of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) were dispatched to Kazakhstan. On 11 January, with the appointment of the new Government, Toqaev announced that order had been restored, and declared that the CSTO forces would return to their home countries (principally the Russian Federation) within 10 days. Toqaev had made certain concessions to the demands of demonstrators, including a freeze in vehicle fuel prices for six months, the dismissal of the former President, Nursultan Nazarbaev, as Chairman of the Security Council, and the dismissal of Kärim Mäsimov, a former Prime Minister, as Chairman of the National Security Committee; Mäsimov was additionally detained on charges of treason.
10 January 2022 Netherlands
A new Government comprising the four parties of the previous administration—the Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie (VVD), Christen Democratisch Appèl, ChristenUnie and Democraten 66—was sworn in, again under Mark Rutte of the VVD, who thus began his fourth term as premier. A coalition agreement, which focused on social spending and combating climate change, had finally been concluded in December 2021, some nine months after legislative elections.
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1 January 2022 Haiti
An assassination attempt was made on Prime Minister Ariel Henry as he visited the northern city of Gonaïves. Gunmen opened fire on Henry and his entourage as they attended a ceremony to celebrate the 218th anniversary of Haiti’s independence at the city’s cathedral. According to local media, one man was killed in the attack, but the Prime Minister was unharmed. The assassination attempt came five months after the murder of President Jovenel Moïse. Henry had succeeded Moïse as acting head of state until elections could be held, although a date for these had yet to be announced. Haiti had been experiencing unprecedented levels of violence, including kidnappings and gang warfare, since Moïse’s assassination, further threatening the country’s already fragile political institutions.
19 December 2021 Chile
Former student leader and national deputy Gabriel Boric of the left-wing Apruebo Dignidad coalition emerged victorious from the second round of the presidential election, securing 55.9% of the valid votes cast, according to the Servicio Electoral de Chile. His opponent, the far-right candidate José Antonio Kast, representing the Partido Republicano, won 44.1% of the ballot. Boric, who pledged to improve social services, to introduce environmental policies and to tax the rich, secured endorsement from losing first round candidates Yasna Provoste and Marco Enriquez-Ominami. Kast conceded defeat and congratulated the new President-elect, who at 35 would be Chile’s youngest head of state; Boric was scheduled to be sworn into office in March 2022.
19 December 2021 Hong Kong
A record low turnout of 30.2% marked elections to an enlarged 90-member Legislative Council, the first to be held under an amended electoral system approved in March by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China that was widely regarded to have eroded democracy in Hong Kong. Among the changes, the number of directly elected members was reduced from 35 to 20, with 40 members now returned by the Election Committee, which is dominated by supporters of the Chinese central Government, and the remaining 30 determined by functional constituencies (comprising professional and special interest groups, historically loyal to Beijing). All candidates were vetted by a screening committee to ensure that they were ‘patriots’. In addition, many potential pro-democracy candidates were either in exile or had been arrested or imprisoned under a crackdown on the opposition. Beijing loyalists or pro-establishment candidates consequently secured all but one of the seats in the Council, with the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong remaining the largest party, with 19 seats.
17 December 2021 Czech Republic (Czechia)
A five-party Government was sworn in by Czech President Miloš Zeman, more than two months after legislative elections in early October. The formation of a new government had been delayed by the ill health of President Zeman, who had been admitted to hospital one day after the elections, in which the populist ANO (YES) party of incumbent Prime Minister Andrej Babiš was removed from power. Zeman was readmitted to hospital in November, after contracting COVID-19. The new Government is headed by Petr Fiala, the longstanding leader of the Občanská Demokratická Strana (Civic Democratic Party) and a former Minister of Education.
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