It’s far too early to declare 2022 a turning point. Yet democracy experts, who are often a pessimistic group, are feeling more optimistic, German Lopez writes for the Times:
For years, democracies have become less representative. Some have fallen into authoritarian rule. Freedom House, which tracks the health of the world’s democracies, has called the decline a “long democratic recession.” But in 2022, small-d democrats fought back not just in Ukraine but also in Brazil, the U.S. and even authoritarian countries like Iran and China. …Because the West’s enduring rally around Ukraine exemplifies an important trend from 2022 that could influence future global events: “This was the year liberal democracy fought back,” as Janan Ganesh wrote in The Financial Times.
“I tend to be the skunk at the garden party,” said Michael Abramowitz, president of Freedom House. “But I do think the story of the last year has been, if hopeful isn’t the right word, at least more mixed.”
Despite recent protests, the authoritarian regimes in Iran, China and Russia remain robust, and a certain set of circumstances must line up for dictators to fall, even though recent protest movements give hope, experts tell VOA’s Laurel Bowman (above).
