Democracy summit was a damp squib

There was much boasting, little introspection

American President Joe Biden’s Summit for Democracy was expected to underline the idea that democracy is the right form of government and it needs to be protected against threats and challenges. Biden had promised to hold such a summit during his election campaign and he has delivered on it with a two-day virtual meeting in which leaders of over 100 countries participated. The initiative has been criticised on many grounds. It has been seen as an attempt to highlight the US’ leadership of the “free world’’ and not an affirmation of the value of democracy. The invitees’ list itself raised questions. Countries like Pakistan, the Philippines and Poland, whose democratic credentials are questionable, were invited for the summit, probably because they have a role in the US foreign policy scheme. Better functioning democracies like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Bhutan were excluded. Pakistan, however, declined the invitation, probably because of pressure from China, which was not invited.

Also Read | China slams US for inviting Taiwan to ‘Summit for Democracy’

It was because the summit was seen primarily as a US foreign policy event and not an occasion for genuine commitment to the values of democracy that it became a damp squib. When the idea was mooted by Biden, there was the claim that it would reconnect the world to the hopeful era after World War II which envisaged a new world order based on freedom, universal rights, individual and national autonomy and international cooperation. But the summit divided the world into two camps, both claiming to be more democratic than the other. The participating leaders used the platform to praise themselves and their countries for their democratic conduct. The US announced a democratic agenda, including a fight against authoritarianism and corruption, promotion of human rights and support for free media and fair elections. Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked about India’s ancient democratic traditions and commitment to the principles of inclusion, pluralistic ethos and transparency. Other countries also spoke of their strengths and some mentioned new challenges like social media and climate change.

There is no perfect democracy and it is futile to imagine that there would be any. But no country accepts any democracy deficit and none look at their own flaws. Some claim to be democracies simply because they hold periodic elections, but elections by themselves do not make a democracy. Some of the essential features of democracy are individual liberties, civil and human rights, rule of law, secularism, independence of institutions, accountability of governments, non-discrimination and respect for persons and parties in the Opposition. Democracy becomes real only when there is an attempt to practise these ideas. There are signs that it is sliding the world over, and words from a summit will not impart it strength.

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