US President Joe Biden virtually addresses the Summit For Democracy, December 9, 2021
UPDATE, DEC 11: I also spoke with Austria’s Radio FM4 on Friday about the short-sighted folly of a “Summit For Democracy”, as opposed to effective action over security, rights, and political participation which constitutes democracy.
Listen to Discussion at 13:36
Instead of promoting itself and America through action, the Biden Administration is doing so through words — we’ll just have this two-day summit.
ORIGINAL ENTRY, DEC 10: I joined Al Jazeera English’s Inside Story on Thursday to analyze why it is essential to uphold and defend democracy — but not to do it through the Biden Administration’s two-day show of a “Summit For Democracy”.
The other panellists are the Egmont Institute’s Peter Neumann and Taiwan-based political analyst Ross Feingold. The host is Nick Clark.
The way you promote democracy is by building up institutions. It is by ensuring the space for political participation for all in the country. And it is by discussing with people in other countries how you can support them — civil society groups, activists, students, journalists, etc.
In other words, it is in the spirit of cooperation. “Democracy” does not need to be shouted from the rooftops. It has to be developed on the ground.
