The Overview: 21.01.08

Europe: Presidential elections in Serbia show nationalist candidate Tomislav Nikolic in the lead and heading towards a runoff poll. Serbia's vote is of interest because of an impending independence declaration in its disputed province of Kosovo and also the prospect of EU membership. Meanwhile, speaking of the EU, Britain is facing a showdown in parliament, with some MPs attempting to force a referendum on the Lisbon treaty (here's a good BBC Q&A), signed in December 2007.

Africa: Sudan's federal affairs minister names one of the leaders of the Janjaweed militia as an advisor. Human Rights Watch calls this "an affront" to victims of atrocities in Darfur. In South Africa, ANC officials have approached President Thabo Mbeki with demands designed to reflect the changed makeup of the party since Jacob Zuma's leadership win in December 2007. One request may be the appointment of party deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe as a second deputy president in government. A peace deal may be close in east DR Congo.

Further reading: The authors of Freakonomics on why some well-intentioned laws don't work. Ecuador's radical government as a model for Canada? And Michel Gondry, a favourite director of some of the Democracy House alumni, curates YouTube.