In warning that more countries slips towards authoritarianism, while the number of established democracies threatened it has never been so high, the intergovernmental organization International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) presented today, Monday (22/11). IDEA also points out that for the first time the US is included in the list of “backward democracies”, mainly due to a downgrade during the second half of his presidency Donald Trump.
More specifically, the populist policies, the exploitation of pandemic restrictions of COVID-19 to silence dissidents, a tendency of countries to imitate anti-democratic behavior of others and the misinformation used to divide societies are the main factors responsible for this, underlines IDEA, which is based in Stockholm.
“More countries than ever suffer from the erosion of democracy”“The number of countries suffering ‘democratic setbacks’ has never been so high,” she said in her 2021 report on the state of democracy, based on data she has been collecting since 1975. in areas, including controls in government and the independence of the judiciary, as well as the freedom of the media and respect for of human rights.
The countries where democracy collapsed
The Afghanistan, in which the Taliban seized power in August following the withdrawal of US-led international troops, more dramatic case this year, while the coup of 1 February in Myanmar marks the collapse of a fragile democracy. Other examples include Mali, in which two coups have taken place since 2020, and Tunisia, where the president dissolved parliament and assumed extraordinary powers. Large democracies, such as Brazil and the USA saw their presidents question the credibility of election results, while the India saw the persecution of groups of people who criticized government policies.
THE Hungary, the Poland, the Slovenia and the Serbia are the European countries with the largest regressions in democracy. THE Turkey At the same time, it experienced one of the biggest setbacks of democracy between 2010 and 2020, broadcasts APE-MPE. “In fact, 70% of the world’s population “It now lives either in non-democratic regimes or in countries where there is a regression of democracy,” IDEA said in a report.
The COVID-19 pandemic led to one outburst of authoritarian behavior of governments, according to the report, which notes that there is no evidence that authoritarian regimes were better at fighting the pandemic. “The pandemic provides additional tools and justification for repressive tactics and silencing dissidents in countries as diverse as Belarus, Cuba, Myanmar, Nicaragua and Venezuela,” the report said.
The case of the USA
The United States, while remaining “a high-level” democracy, is joining the “backward democracies” for the first time, the intergovernmental group said in a statement. Democratic regression in the US is linked to falling country indicators on “civil liberties and government controls”, explained o Alexander Hudson, one of the authors of the report.
IDEA mainly refers to the “historic turning point” of the November 2020 presidential election disputes from Donald Trump and “Reduce congressional inquiries into the president’s actions between 2018 and 2020.” “We rated the US as ‘backward’ for the first time this year, but our data suggests that the downturn started at least in 2019,” Hudson said.
Covering democratic indicators for half a century and monitoring the majority of countries in the world (around 160), IDEA classifies them into three categories: democracy (including ‘backward democracy’), “hybrid” systems and authoritarian regimes.
“The visible deterioration of democracy in the United States, as evidenced by the growing trend of questioning credible election results, repression efforts, and galloping polarization (…) is one of the most troubling developments in democracy worldwide,” he said. Secretary General of IDEA, Kevin Casas-Zamora.
The intergovernmental organization also pointed out that for the fifth consecutive year in 2020, the number of countries moving in the direction of authoritarianism exceeded the number of countries in the process of democratization. it is about a unprecedented situation since it began collecting data in the 1970s, he stressed, which is expected to continue in 2021.
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
