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December 28, 2009

Why Democracy Matters
Posted by Michael Cohen

Spencer is a bit upset about the argument by Fred Hiatt that Hillary Clinton's equating of political rights with economic and social rights is wrong:

Ms. Clinton’s lumping of economic and social “rights” with political and personal freedom was a standard doctrine of the Soviet Bloc, which used to argue at every East-West conference that human rights in Czechoslovakia were superior to those in the United States, because one provided government health care that the other lacked. In fact, as U.S. diplomats used to tirelessly respond, rights of liberty — for free expression and religion, for example — are unique in that they are both natural and universal; they will exist so long as governments do not suppress them. Health care, shelter and education are desirable social services, but they depend on resources that governments may or may not possess. These are fundamentally different goods, and one cannot substitute for another.

Spencer responds with this:

What Fred Hiatt’s band of merry mind finds unable to comprehend is that when we’re talking about addressing what Jefferson called the tyranny over the minds of men requires building a constituency for the meaningfulness of freedom.

This always makes for an interesting argument. Spencer is right that health care, education and social services are not, sniff-sniff, merely "desirable. And the notion that HRC is making a Soviet-style argument is, how shall we say, in bad form. But while I generally agree with Spencer's sentiment I actually think that unintentionally Hiatt makes a good point here. 

Hiatt is right that communist leaders used to point to their "success" in providing basic services as somehow akin to the political freedom provided for in the West - and that became a convenient excuse and cover for denying basic rights to their citizens. Indeed, there are a growing crop of authoritarian governments (and one big one named China) that are using these types of arguments to justify the denial of basic political rights to their citizens. 

But of course, political right and social rights are, on a practical level, not equal; because only with political freedom, transparency, a free press and the ability of citizens to petition or influence their leaders etc can citizens ensure that any social service is being provided fairly to citizens - or even provided at all. In other words, political freedom is the sine qua non of the sort of social and economic freedom that the Universal Declaration on Human Rights says are . . . universal. And basic political rights are the only guarantee that any citizen has to maintain these rights. Otherwise they are simply relying on the benevolence of their unelected and unaccountable leaders.

Spencer is right to quote Samantha Power when she says, "democracy does not fill stomachs, alleviate malaria, or protect neighborhoods from marauding bands of militiamen." True indeed. But then a lack of democracy doesn't do these things either. And as Power suggests, "Democracy is valuable to people insofar as it allows them first to meet their basic needs."  No doubt. For most people around the world (gross generalization alert) free and fair elections take a back seat to basic health care, food security and education. Economic development is important, but when you have political leaders who rule by fiat and have little interest in providing for their citizens it ain't going to amount to much in the end. (Of course mileage may vary - China and Singapore are not Egypt or Rwanda or Cuba.) Of course, this is a constant challenge for aid officials and how they use aid to help people and not feed the coffers of rapacious public officials. 

To get this issue back to US foreign policy it's great that Clinton said in a recent speech that US engagement with Islamic countries would focus on "education, science, technology and "entrepreneurship," but you can't really have these things - particularly the latter - if you don't have rule of law? The focus of the Bush Administration on elections as the end-all, be-all was mindless, simplistic and actually did more harm than good. Creating a democracy agenda that focuses on rule of law development, civil society promotion and support, and institution building would be much more effective and would, in the long run, probably help support movements geared toward the promotion of social services like education and health care. But to date that hasn't been the focus of the Obama Administration; instead they seem a bit afraid to talk directly about democracy and have in places like Egypt actually cut funding for civil society support.

I'm not sure if Fred Hiatt was trying to make this point, but it seems one worth making and a fair indictment of the Obama Administration's approach to democracy promotion to date. I'm all for promoting economic development - and fully resourcing AID, NED and the Millennium Challenge Corporation - but you can't have full economic rights without political rights (and that doesn't mean just elections). 

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... because only with political freedom, transparency, a free press and the ability of citizens to petition or influence their leaders etc can citizens ensure that any social service is being provided fairly to citizens - or even provided at all.

And only if citizens are at least roughly equal in their economic power - and hence their effective social and political power - can they ensure that those vaunted political "liberties" and "freedoms" translate into real political power, and a degree of political freedom commensurate with that possessed by each of my fellow-citizen. Absent the real, concrete equality of its citizens, democracy is a sham.

My society might give me the liberty to prattle away busily and passionately on blogs with my fellow citizen-bots about the things that aggrieve me. But if citizens who happen to own or run health care conglomerates and insurance companies, and who are permitted to accumulate tens of millions in dollars in personal wealth, and buy the attentions and devotions of political representatives, possess vastly more power than the rest of us slugs, then the aforementioned liberties are of much more limited value, and do not conduce to democracy.

The mere freedom to gab impotently, without much government interference, is a technique of control, not genuine political freedom.

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Moreover, a democracy cannot flourish without a free press. It is the sunshine and freshness of a democracy. A free press is indispensable for a free people. As frustrating as the press can be--sometimes politicians believe they are treated unfairly, and maybe sometimes they are--there is no substitute in a democracy for a free press. A free press is an absolute requisite for democracy.The press has a deep and serious responsibility to the public as well.

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There are number of solutions and ideas as to how to reform our health care system. But in order for these ideas to be heard and for much-needed change to occur we must also reform our democracy.

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If citizens who happen to own or run health care conglomerates and insurance companies, and who are permitted to accumulate tens of millions in dollars in personal wealth, and buy the attentions and devotions of political representatives.

Only through clean elections - a volutary system full public public financing for campaigns - can we free our elected officials and our political process from the grips of corporate moneyed interests. There are number of solutions and ideas as to how to reform our health care system.

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Creating a democracy agenda that focuses on rule of law development, civil society promotion and support, and institution building would be much more effective and would, in the long run, probably help support movements geared toward the promotion of social services like education and health care.

A free press is indispensable for a free people. As frustrating as the press can be--sometimes politicians believe they are treated unfairly.

I agree with Spencer's sentiment and I think that unintentionally Hiatt makes a good point here.

Definitely democracy matters dude. As we all feel that money is the most corrupting feature in our current system of democracy. Campaign financing is the major way that money corrupts the system. If we change elections, we can then work on the myriad ofother issues that people care about.

For most people around the world free and fair elections take a back seat to basic health care, food security and education.

a free press and the ability of citizens to petition or influence their leaders etc can citizens ensure that any social service is being provided fairly to citizens

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I think,there are number of solutions and ideas as to how to reform our health care system. But in order for these ideas to be heard and for much-needed change to occur we must also reform our democracy.

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I actually think that unintentionally Hiatt makes a good point here.

Definitely democracy matters. As we all feel that money is the most corrupting feature in our current system of democracy...

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Definitely democracy matters dude. As we all feel that money is the most corrupting feature in our current system of democracy. Campaign financing is the major way that money corrupts the system.
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