What Does Democracy Mean?

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What Does Democracy Mean?
2
What Does It Mean to You?

• Roots demokratia Greek and middle French
  democratie
• Could roots inform us about its world-wide
  applicability?

3
Are There Minimum Standards of Democracy?

• Can we really define democracy?
• Lets try and make a list, shall we?
• Definition
• Elements
• Processes
• Necessary vs. sufficient conditions
• Democratization
• Democratic consolidation

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Waves of Democracy

• Or democratization - courtesy of Samuel P.
  Huntington
• 1st wave flawed, slow, Western-based
• 2nd wave post-WW II - 30 countries
• 3rd wave mid-1970s 70 countries
• Need two successive peaceful transfers of power

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Is the 3rd Wave Dead?

• Rise of authoritarianism
• War on terrorism
• Illiberal democracies (aka electoral or partial
  democracies)
• Substantive v. procedural democracies
• Middle East

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• Americas allies in the Middle East are
  autocratic, corrupt and heavy-handed. But, they
  are still more liberal, tolerant and pluralist
  than what would likely replace them (w/
  democratic elections.) If elections had been last
  month (Nov. 2001) in Saudi Arabia with King Faud
  and Osama bin Laden on the ballot, I would not
  bet too heavily on His Royal Highness fortunes.
  
• Fareed Zakaria, How to Save the Arab World,
  Newsweek, Dec. 24, 2001

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And then, theres Iraq

• Main Sunni party pulls out of Iraqi
  electionIraq's largest mainstream Sunni Muslim
  party pulled out of the election race yesterday,
  saying the violence plaguing areas north and west
  of Baghdad made a "free and fair vote" on January
  30 impossible. The Guardian Tuesday December
  28, 2004

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How Does Democracy Develop?

• Organically?
• The Good eastern Europe post-Soviet period,
  EU, NATO, CSCE
• The Bad Chinas attempt at free markets
  without human rights emphasis
• The Ugly Russia, too much, too fast,
  regression as Putin increases control

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Can Democracy Be an Imposed Solution?

• Can you import a value or political system?
• Religion Crusades
• Economics/Culture Colonialism
• Political Spread of democracy Bush Doctrine,
  War on Terrorism
• Arab Spring
• Can democracy be influence through incentives
  e.g. trade and aid? EU for instance

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Americas History of Democratization

• Pre-revolutionary Shining City on the Hill
• Revolution/Founding Empire of Liberty
• Jacksonian Era Christianizing savages
• Imperial America Cuba, Philippines
• Wilsonian Internationalism Making the world
  safe for democracy
• Cold War Liberalism Fighting Communism
• Post-imperial or neo-imperial War on Terrorism

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Do Democracy and Free Markets Go Hand In Hand?

• Not according to Amy Chua, author of
• World on Fire 2003
• Too much democracy too fast is BAD
• Need certain conditions for democracy to grow and
  thrive
• Ethnic minorities at risk
• Indians in East Africa, Jews in Russia, Han
  Chinese in the Philippines

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Are newly formed democracies at risk?

• The Economists Intelligence Unit surveyed new
  democracies in Eastern Europe between 2006 and
  2008 finding that their democracy scores had
  decreased.
• But no serious trend away from democratic
  leanings due to globalization.
• Economic hard times undermined the government of
  Latvia trouble brewing in Ukraine

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What About Your Country?

• What is the status of democracy in your assigned
  country?
• What elements of democracy does it have?
• What elements of democracy does it lack?
• Will democracy work or is it just a Western
  thang?

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Survey says!

• Fully democratized UK and Mexico
• Partially democratized Russia and Nigeria
• Democracy? LOL! China and Iran
• (College Boards AP sourcebook, democratization
  briefing paper, 2005)