1. Democracy was once believed to be the best political system and would spread globally, but its advance has halted and it is now facing challenges. 2. The success of China's authoritarian model that has achieved rapid economic growth and addressed public issues more effectively than Western democracies has increased doubts about democracy. 3. Emerging democracies have faced issues like democratic backsliding, military coups, and power grabs that undermine the system, while established democracies struggle with issues like debt, dysfunction, and loss of public trust.

1. So is democracy not the
best political system after
all?
The Economist
read by Ângela Santos
March 2014

2. We believed that democracy would be the best political
system and would eventually spread all across the globe.
As well as letting people
say what they think
and decide on their future.
On average, democracies
are richer,
are less likely to go to war,
are more effective at combating corruption.
In the year 2000, there were 120 democratic
nations (Freedom House).
63% of the world's population lived in a
democracy.

3. Old doubts about democracy are now making a return
and earning increasing respect.
Three main reasons:
1. the success of the new Chinese model
2. the direction in which the emerging democracies are heading
3. the way the old democracies are functioning.
Although 40% of the world's population (more
than ever) live in countries where there are free
and fair elections, the advance of democracy has
come to a halt or even begun to recede.
The failure of the
democratic system first
became apparent in the
year 2000.

4. The new Chinese
modelThe Chinese Communist Party has
succeeded in making more economic
progress than the democratic world:
at the height of its growth, America
managed to double its standard of living
every 30 years;
in the last 30 years, China has doubled its
standard of living every 10 years.
Larry Summers,
Harvard University
China has been able to rapidly resolve
public issues that western democracies can
take decades to resolve. For example: 85% of Chinese say they are very
satisfied with the direction their
country is taking
31% of Americans do too...
Pew Survey of Global Attitudes, 2013
in two years, China extended its pension system to
240 million rural citizens (many more than the total
number of people covered by the American public
pension system).

5. promotion of political office-holders on the basis of their capacity to achieve goals,
greater attention paid to public opinion, paradoxically as a result of the obsession with control (imprisonment of
dissidents and censure of online discussions).
The new Chinese
model
tight control by the Communist Party
constant effort to recruit new talent
to the Party,
change in political leader-
ship every 10 years,

6. The Chinese intellectual elite claims that the
Chinese system is more efficient than democracy
and less likely to suffer impasses.
"Many developing countries introduced the western
political system and values and are now living in
disorder and chaos. China provides an alternative
model."
Wang Jisi, Peking University
Some countries in Africa (Rwanda), the Middle East (Dubai) and south-east
Asia (Vietnam) appear to be tempted by the Chinese alternative.
The new Chinese
model
"Democracy is destroying the
West, especially America, because
it institutionalises the impasse,
plays down decision-making and
produces second-rate presidents,
like George Bush Junior."
Zhang Weiwei,
Fudan University
"Democracy complicates simple
things and lets smooth-talking
politicians trick people."
Yu Keping,
Peking University

7. The emerging democracies
In Egypt, Hosni Mubarak was
deposed in 2011 but
after Morsi, of the Muslim
Brotherhood, was elected, he used
the democratic system to obtain
almost unlimited power, invade the
state of Brothers and guarantee a
permanent Islamic majority;
in 2013, the army overthrew
Egypt's first democratically elected
president.
In Syria, war is raging.
In Libya, chaos reigns.
Unsuccessful efforts

8. In Russia, Boris Yeltsin set the democratic ball rolling, but
his successor Putin destroyed the substance of democracy (dominating the press and
imprisoning his opponents),
while still keeping up appearances: everyone can vote, as long as Putin wins.
In Venezuela, Ukraine, Argentina, etc, other travesties followed.
A travesty is worse than giving up because
it discredits the system more.
The emerging democracies
Travesties

9. In South Africa, the same party has been in power since 1994.
In Turkey, corruption and autocracy appear to be replacing the
previous combination of prosperity, moderate Islam and
democracy.
In Thailand, Bangladesh and Cambodia, the opposition parties
boycotted recent elections or refused to accept the results.
The emerging democracies
Examples of regression

10. The young democracies are
repeating the same mistakes the
old ones made:
Young democracies
Old mistakes
excessive spending on
agreeable, short-term
measures and insufficient
long-term investment;
political systems taken over by interest groups
and undermined by anti-democratic behaviour.
In Brazil, civil servants retire at the
age of 53, but little has been done
to modernise the airport network.
In India, constituencies are well
paid, but invest little in
infrastructure.

11. Democracy does not bloom
spontaneously when it is planted.
Democracy is a practice with cultural
roots.
Democracy needs support from
institutions that take a long time to build.
In almost every western country, the right to vote came long after
sophisticated political systems,
powerful civil services,
constitutional rights,
societies that valued individual rights and independent judicial systems.
Lessons to be learned

12. The system's faults are increasingly apparent
and disappointment with politicians is growing.
Old democracies

13. The 2007–2008 financial crisis revealed
weaknesses in our western political
systems, such as the debt and subsequent
bail-out of bankers using taxpayers' money.
Old democracies
Trust undermined
When no arms were found, the justification given for the war with Iraq
became the defence of democracy (George Bush Jr), which was seen as an
excuse for American imperialism.

14. The democracies in Europe and the USA are now identified with
debt and dysfunction.
In the United States, democracy has become associated with
• impasse (they cannot even pass a budget, let alone plan for
the future...);
• manipulation of the ways votes are counted;
• the influence of lobbies in politics, i.e. democracy is being
sold and the rich have more power than the poor.
Old democracies
The models

15. The democracies in Europe and the USA are now identified with
debt and dysfunction.
Old democracies
The models
In the EU, democracy can be temporarily suspended:
the decision to introduce the euro was taken by technocrats (only
Denmark and Sweden said no in referendums);
the efforts to obtain popular support for the Treaty of Lisbon
ceased when voting went in the opposite direction;
during the euro-zone crisis, Greece and Italy were forced to
replace democratically elected leaders with technocrats;
the European Parliament, created to remedy Europe's democratic
shortcomings, is ignored and scorned.

16. National policy depends increasingly
on global markets and international
organisations, so a country's
politicians are not fully in control of
keeping promises.
There are supranational problems,
such as climate change and tax
evasion, that cannot be resolved at
national level.
In the western world, democracy is under
pressure from above, below and within.
Pressure from above: globalisation
To respond to globalisation,
politicians have handed over
part of their power to non-
elected technocrats (e.g.
independent central banks).

17. Demands for power from regions leaning towards
independence (Catalonia and Scotland), Indian states
and American counties.
Imposition by organisations such as NGOs and
lobbies.
The Internet, which facilitates unrest and makes
political voting seem like an anachronism.
Pressure from below: internal powers

18. Increasing provocation in the form of voters' protests: the candidate who came to power
promising to be openly corrupt (Iceland); the comedian who obtained a quarter of the votes cast
(Italy).
Pressure from within: trends
The habit of incurring debt to
give the voters what they want,
in the short term, and
neglecting long-term
investment.
Decreasing participation:
less party members
(20% in the UK in 1950, 1% now)
rising abstention rate (in 49
democracies, abstention rates
grew by 10% between
1980/84 and 2007/13.
over half of voters lack confidence in the government (according to a
survey conducted in seven European countries, 2012)
62% are of the opinion that politicians lie constantly (YouGov, 2012).

19. The capitalist elite in India complains that
India's chaotic democracy produces abysmal infrastructures,
but the authoritarian system in China produces motorways,
magnificent airports and high-speed trains.
The democracies in the USA and
Europe are no longer role models for
the rest of the world.
The Chinese model is becoming tempting.

20. China continues to represent a
credible threat to the idea that
democracy is a superior system
and will eventually prevail.
Although the Chinese government elite
is constantly increasing its wealth
and is likely to endure;
although growth in China has slowed down
(from 10% to less than 8%)
and is likely to slow down even further,