This GSoD In Focus aims at providing a brief overview of the state of democracy in Africa and the Middle East at the end of 2019, prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, and then assesses some of the preliminary impacts that the pandemic has had on democracy in the region in the last 10 months.
Key facts and findings include:
Africa
International IDEA participated at the webinar "Facing Current Challenges on Democracy, Peace and Security", organized on Wednesday, 7 January 2021, by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences together with Asia Pacific Association for Peace Research (APPRA). Leena Rikkilä Tamang, Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, presented the major regional findings of The Global State of Democracy 2019: Addressing the Ills, Reviving the Promise, and of
This GSoD In Focus Special Brief provides an overview of the state of democracy in Asia and the Pacific at the end of 2019, prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, and assesses some of the preliminary impacts that the pandemic has had on democracy in the region in 2020.
Key fact and findings include:
The International community reunited on 16 September 2020 to commemorate Democracy Day during a time of global crisis and uncertainty, reaffirming the key role of democratic institutions and the importance of protecting human rights. Today, in fact, is a pivotal moment for democracy, and while the pandemic has further exposed inequalities and aggravated life conditions of the most vulnerable, governments around the world have the great opportunity to learn and grow from this crisis in order to build a more sustainable type of democracy for the future.
On Friday 11 December, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia and International IDEA co-organized a webinar to present the findings of International IDEA’s report The Global State of Democracy 2019: Addressing the Ills, Reviving the Promise in Mongolia. The webinar explored the state of democracy in Mongolia today, as well as in Asia and the Pacific as a whole, and provided valuable lessons from managing a general election during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This GSoD In Focus provides a brief overview of the global state of democracy at the end of 2019, prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, and assesses some of the preliminary impacts that the pandemic has had on democracy globally in 2020.
Key findings include:
If the most recent elections in Venezuela have already been marked by distrust, the election scheduled for 6 December, in which the entirety of its National Assembly will be renewed with a five-year term, has given rise to even more questions about its integrity. In addition, the election will be held in particularly adverse circumstances, for in addition to the political and humanitarian crises Venezuela has been experiencing are the risks posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has impacted the organization of elections worldwide.
On 3 February 2020, the High Court of Malawi sitting on constitutional matters nullified the presidential election that was held on 21 May 2019. That decision was upheld by the Supreme Court of Appeal on 8 May 2020. Various reforms were ordered by the courts and legislated by Parliament, most notably a change in the electoral system, from a simple majoritarian, or first-past-the-post (FPTP), system to a two-round system where the winner must receive over 50 per cent of the votes.
The COVID-19 outbreak has affected the world in all respects, including democracy and fundamental freedoms such as the freedoms of expression and movement, and the right to health. This presents a central challenge for democracies: how to balance mitigating the outbreak and at the same time respecting democratic principles such as accountability, transparency and respect for civil and political rights. Many countries have implemented stringent restrictions to contain the virus, which have implications for human rights and freedoms.
Members of international organizations with expertise in areas concerning global violence, corruption, access to information and the collection and interpretation of data, gathered on 12 November for the virtual launch of the fourth annual SDG16 Data Initiative Global Report to discuss and assess progress on the implementation of SDG16, on peacefu
