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Half the world’s democracies are in decline as civil liberties and the rule of law deteriorate, while already authoritarian governments are becoming more oppressive, an intergovernmental watchdog group said on Wednesday.
The Stockholm-based International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) said in its annual report that democracies are being undermined by issues ranging from restrictions on free speech to growing mistrust of the legitimacy of elections.
Several factors, including Russia’s war in Ukraine, rampant inflation, a looming global recession, climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic, pose major challenges.
“The world faces many crises, from the cost of living to the risk of a nuclear confrontation to the acceleration of the climate crisis,” IDEA said in its 2022 State of Democracy study, which relied on data compiled since 1975.
“At the same time, we’re seeing global democracy in decline. It’s a toxic combination.”
IDEA’s Global State of Democracy Index is based on more than 100 variables, including measures such as freedom of expression, personal integrity and safety, which are then grouped and aggregated into broader categories.
The number of “backsliding” countries — those where democracy has been eroded the most — has never been greater, including Poland, Hungary and the United States, where political polarization, institutional failure and civil liberties are at risk, the report says question.
In Europe, nearly half of all democracies have eroded over the past five years, it said. Yet democratic values and institutions are increasingly seen as fundamental bulwarks against Russian aggression, notably in Ukraine, but also in most countries in the region.
“Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine has shaken Europe, forcing the region to rethink security and address looming food and energy crises,” IDEA said.
It said global democracy was threatened by challenges to the legitimacy of credible election results, restrictions on online freedoms and rights, entrenched corruption and the rise of far-right parties.
“Never before have democracies responded with greater urgency to show their citizens that they can forge new, innovative social contracts that bring people together rather than divide them,” IDEA said.
Authoritarian governments have increasingly cracked down on dissent, with more than two-thirds of the world’s population now living in “regressive” democracies or under authoritarian rule, the report found.
Globally, the number of countries moving toward authoritarianism is more than double the number of countries moving toward democracy measured over the past six years.
On a positive note, Africa has remained resilient despite the instability. The quality of democracy has improved in Gambia, Niger, Zambia and other countries.
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