Opinion - Authoritarianism is on the rise, coups back in fashion, and elections reduced to a perfunctory ritual. How do we reverse the slide?
Authoritarianism is on the rise, coups back in fashion, and elections reduced to a perfunctory ritual. How do we reverse the slide?The axis of authoritarianism is expanding and solidarity amongst authoritarian states is flourishing as they develop a shared lexicon around decolonization, anti-elitism, security, prosperity, patriotism, and sovereignty. Democracy, on the other hand, is losing its noble tool of global solidarity.
Responding to the global trend in the decline of democratic values requires that we review and renew universally accepted concepts of democracy and agree baselines for assessing adherence to these democratic values. Questioning democracy and its ability to deliver on development and good governance is now a popular pastime as inequality and populism rises and colonialism is increasingly challenged. As much as we accept that the concept and practice of democracy needs renewal, we must be wary of smug assertions that development is king. While democracy should respond to economic reality, its shortcomings in providing economic development are not enough to dismiss its relevance. However, Thethat 9.
We need to restart and connect conversations about strengthening and invigorating our multilateral institutions. For instance, we need to review the United Nations operating model - designed 76 years ago for a world that is remarkably different from the one it was designed for, but one still dominated by the same human foibles.
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