During the last three decades of the 20th
Century the number of democracies in the world almost doubled, from
44 to 86, according to Freedom House, a New York City think tank that
researches and tracks democracy. This dramatic global trend
coincided with and was reinforced by a global associational
revolution, as thousands of NGOs (nongovernmental organizations)
emerged in Asia, Latin America and Africa, even before the spread of
the Internet. In the first decade of the new century, however, the
number of democracies (87) barely increased at all.
The Arab Spring of 2011 ushered in a wave of optimism
that the Internet would help turns the tide against autocrats
everywhere. More pessimistic observers cautioned, however, that Arab
countries generally have neither strong political institutions nor
strong civil societies.
A year later, even the idea of democracy is under
assault in the Middle East, a disturbing trend exemplified by the
dissolution of the newly elected parliament in Egypt. Even the
election of a president has been clouded by his affiliation with the
Muslim Brotherhood. Nor does civil society offer much hope for the
Egyptian political future. Many of Egypt’s NGOs, unlike indigenous
NGOs in the rest of the world, were financially dependent on the
government and have struggled to assert their autonomy since
Mubarak’s fall.
Meanwhile, in Asia, Africa and Latin America, it is not
only the Internet that provides hope for the future of democracy.
Although the development of civil society often strengthens democracy
indirectly, NGOs with a specialized programmatic interest in
promoting democracy have emerged recently in many countries. They are
engaged in everything from monitoring elections to re-training police
in human rights, from promoting public deliberation in local
communities to pushing governments to become more accountable and
transparent. These
organizations combine imported democratic ideas with the recovery of
traditional democratic practices, often common at the local level.
They also understand that democratization is a long, hard slog that
must encompass more than elections.
Importing Democracy: The Role of NGOs in South
Africa, Tajikistan and Argentina, based on
over 100 interviews, focuses on the work of these organizations in
two struggling democracies (Argentina and South Africa) and one
autocracy (Tajikistan).
An appendix describes democratization NGOs in 15 other countries.
Given the lack of strong civil societies in the Middle
East, it seems unlikely that the promise of the Arab Spring will be
fulfilled, with the possible exception of Tunisia. However, in many
other countries, the combination of democratization NGOs and online
social networking offer powerful possibilities for advancing
democracy.
