I know we all hold our ‘democracy’ up as something to be strive for in the future by many countries….but can it be a dangerous move? Or is it the only answer for the government of a country?
A couple of countries that are trying the democracy thing come to mind……Pakistan and Indonesia……..
Indonesia and Pakistan are plagued by sectarian violence despite their embrace of democratic ideals—but why? According to Pankaj Mishra, writing at Bloomberg, their democracy is actually the problem. While officials secretly wield power through extremist groups and conservative Islamists flame religious tensions, elected officials are only making things worse: “In the absence of substantive democracy,” writes Mishra, leaders “cynically deploy radical groups to practice power politics.” In Pakistan, for example, mainstream leaders allegedly pay off a Shiite-killing terrorist group because it gathers votes for elections due this year. In Indonesia, lighter political restrictions have allowed militias and terrorist organizations to be officially recognized. Governments, meanwhile, are too fragmented to face extremists or grapple with poverty. And progressive parties have been unable to overcome decades of crushing blows from the ruling elite. “One day, this dyad of dupes and extremists may well be regarded as a byproduct of a particularly unstable and grim phase in the evolution of democracy,” writes Mishra. “But that day will come only if democracy amounts to something more than … a way of further empowering the rich and the powerful.” Click for Mishra’s full column.
And that is why democracy can be a dangerous thing…..corruption and empowering the rich to do as they choose with no regard for the country and its people……but is what they have really democracy?
I’m not sure we should be ready to call anything these two countries are projecting as anything close to a democracy, no matter what they say. At best they are oligarchies or better yet, a thugocracies. When there are legitimate parties that people can vote on and there is the rule of law to enforce an accepted constitution, THEN we might be able to use the word democracy for either of these countries, IMO.
Larry, these countries are no worse than ours….we have the same rich families running everything….we just somehow hide the lack of real democracy better than the others….
Democracy is actually anti-progressive here in Brazil. Without going too deeply into it the lack of education (particularly in the north) screws up with national elections. We’ve had a string of popularist presidents now, one worse than the other. They appeal to the lowest common denominator and win easily. There is no Right wing here, just varieties of left, which is great. The problem is, the far left is winning too often.
John, after years of ultra right wing governments the countries of South America are just trying to find their way….and they are losing it as they go….just a thought….
The corruption is truly atrocious. Lula, the self-described savior of the worker, left office with $R300+ million in his bank account. $R300 million that wasn’t there when he entered office. It’s a miracle!
Sounds like my mayor…..he has been in office since casinos got here in 1992…..a long serving mayor…..
It’s sad isn’t it. Particularly with lula. So many desperately poor people here really had faith in the man, and Brazilians are a very gullible, trusting lot. They got Nossa Familia, a type of handout which amounted to just $50 US a month… which achieves nothing, really. Teachers salaries didn’t increase noticeably, and no real investment was made in education. Who did extremely well were the bankers (they never had it so good), Petrobras, and the few families who still own Brazil’s major manufacturing companies.
An age old story……rich get richer and the poor get…..well nothing…..
There’s hope… the President in Uruguay seems to be a player for the right side.
But can he be corrupted?
Of course he can. Right now he’s doing well. Question is, will it continue…
Is that always the question? temptation is always there…..will he be a strong good man or will he do what is always done?