by Georgs Binduks, University of Latvia
Illiberalism is an ideological phenomenon that directly opposes liberalism and its values. It poses a great threat both to democracy and world peace. In politics, illiberalism often manifests as “illiberal democracy,” which in a way serves as a transition point between liberal democracy and an authoritarian regime. Leaders in this kind of governing system want to be officially seen as leaders of a liberal democracy. In reality, there can be a high level of corruption while a select few hold the majority of power and tend to oppress free speech, which is detrimental to liberalism. Such practices inside the national government alienate both civil society from government and the country itself from other democracies, such as trade partners or member states of a common alliance.
Democracy, which is based on human rights, freedom, rule of law, and government accountability to the people, is the main enemy of illiberalism.
Democracy, which is based on human rights, freedom, rule of law, and government accountability to the people, is the main enemy of illiberalism. Illiberal governments often restrict freedoms such as freedom of speech and the media, destroy political opposition, and weaken the judiciary. They gradually become more corrupt and concentrate power in the hands of one person or one political party. Such actions reduce the transparency of democratic processes and the efficiency of governance, as well as weakens the trust of citizens in state institutions.
Illiberal states can use their influence to spread authoritarianism and destabilize the region or even the entire world.
Furthermore, illiberalism poses a serious threat to international peace. Democracies are often based on principles of cooperation and peaceful solutions that limit the possibility of conflict. However, the spread of illiberalism may undermine this stability. Illiberal states can use their influence to spread authoritarianism and destabilize the region or even the entire world. They can threaten human rights, aggressively spread their spheres of influence, and promote hostility towards other countries. A prime example of this is Putin’s Russia and The Russian war in Ukraine.
The rise of illiberalism in Russia also poses challenges to international organizations and cooperation between institutions, such institutions being the EU and NATO. If states practicing illiberalism do not pay due respect to international laws and norms, they can threaten international treaties and agreements and destabilize global trade and security mechanisms. This can be observed with regard to current inflation in Europe and destabilized unity between all involved countries internationally.
In order to reduce the threat of illiberalism to democracy and international peace, it is important to strengthen democratic institutions and the protection of human rights, both at the national and international levels. It is also essential to promote education and awareness of the importance and values of democratic processes. The international community must be determined to defend and promote democratic principles and ensure that illiberal tendencies are detected and effectively countered.
In conclusion, illiberalism threatens the basic values of democracy and can lead to conflicts between countries as well as develop citizens’ mistrust of government and political nihilism. This can undermine the social capital of said country and eventually promote unlawful activity, as well as negatively impact all neighboring countries. It is especially important to take this into account, as we currently live in a globalized and digitalized world where everything is shared on the internet. To preserve and strengthen the principles of democracy and international peace, we need to raise awareness before it is too late.
- This blog is a part of a blog series written by the BAMSE Riga intensive course students. The blog series analyses the concept of resilience from five different viewpoints: democracy in crises, regional responses, social consequences, relevance of history politics and cultural approaches. This blog belongs to the democracy in crises part of the blog series. Read more about the blog series on Bamse News & Events website.