Introduction
Police detain a protester in Ankara, Turkey, on Sept. 14, 2017, during the trial of two teachers fired during a purge of suspected supporters of a failed coup last year against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Autocratic leaders in a rising number of countries are restricting citizens' rights, reversing years of democratic progress. (Cover: AFP/Getty Images/Adem Altan)
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Many democracies in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and Southeast Asia are veering toward autocracy, stalling or reversing decades of democratic progress. Leaders have postponed elections, jailed opponents, restricted personal and press freedoms and rewritten constitutions to legalize their actions. Freedoms have eroded in such countries as Russia, Venezuela, Turkey, the Philippines and Poland. In addition, Western democracies are struggling with economic, social and political instability, corruption, immigration and frustrated voters who have turned to populist-nationalist leaders for solutions. Donald Trump, elected president in a wave of populist fervor in the United States, has vowed to stop promoting democracy overseas and to withdraw from some treaties. Meanwhile, Russia seeks to undermine democratic institutions, free elections and liberal Western alliances, and China is wooing developing nations in an effort to show that countries can prosper without the constraints of democracy. Still, some observers are optimistic about democracy's future, saying that new democracies are emerging and others are showing surprising resilience.
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Oct. 08, 2021 |
Erdoğan's New Turkey |
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Oct. 20, 2017 |
Democracy Under Stress |
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Jul. 17, 2012 |
Myanmar's New Era |
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Jan. 17, 2012 |
Emerging Central Asia |
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Jun. 21, 2011 |
Peacebuilding |
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May 03, 2011 |
Turmoil in the Arab World |
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Feb. 15, 2011 |
Sub-Saharan Democracy |
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Jun. 2010 |
Democracy in Southeast Asia |
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Apr. 01, 2005 |
Exporting Democracy |
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Jan. 30, 2004 |
Democracy in the Arab World |
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Nov. 03, 2000 |
Democracy in Latin America |
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Oct. 08, 1999 |
Democracy in Eastern Europe |
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Jul. 24, 1998 |
Democracy in Asia |
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Aug. 17, 1990 |
Initiatives: True Democracy or Bad Lawmaking? |
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Feb. 02, 1990 |
Free Markets, Free Politics and Growth |
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Jun. 14, 1967 |
Greece: Monarchy Vs. Republicanism |
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Feb. 04, 1959 |
Revolutionary Ferment and Democratic Processes |
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