Conditioning Democratization

Conditioning Democratization
Author: Ridvan Peshkopia
Publisher: Anthem Press
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2014-04-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0857283251

This book analyzes the effects of European Union membership conditionality on institutional reforms in Eastern Europe, building on concrete examples from four sectors in Albania and Macedonia, two postcommunist countries that have yet to join the EU. The author discusses the theory of “consociational democracy,” often considered the key to stabilizing deeply divided countries, and reapplies it on the international stage to argue for how the EU can better direct democratization.

The Dynamics of Democratization

The Dynamics of Democratization
Author: Nathan J. Brown
Publisher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 344
Release: 2011-07-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 142140088X

The explosive spread of democracy has radically transformed the international political landscape and captured the attention of academics, policy makers, and activists alike. With interest in democratization still growing, Nathan J. Brown and other leading political scientists assess the current state of the field, reflecting on the causes and diffusion of democracy over the past two decades. The volume focuses on three issues very much at the heart of discussions about democracy today: dictatorship, development, and diffusion. The essays first explore the surprising but necessary relationship between democracy and authoritarianism; they next analyze the introduction of democracy in developing countries; last, they examine how international factors affect the democratization process. In exploring these key issues, the contributors ask themselves three questions: What causes a democracy to emerge and succeed? Does democracy make things better? Can democracy be successfully promoted? In contemplating these questions, The Dynamics of Democratization offers a frank and critical assessment of the field for students and scholars of comparative politics and the political economy of development. Contributors: Gregg A. Brazinsky, George Washington University; Nathan J. Brown, George Washington University; Kathleen Bruhn, University of California at Santa Barbara; Valerie J. Bunce, Cornell University; José Antonio Cheibub, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Bruce J. Dickson, George Washington University; M. Steven Fish, University of California at Berkeley; John Gerring, Boston University; Henry E. Hale, George Washington University; Susan D. Hyde, Yale University; Craig M. Kauffman, George Washington University; Staffan I. Lindberg, University of Florida; Sara Meerow, University of Amsterdam; James Raymond Vreeland, Georgetown University; Sharon L. Wolchik, George Washington University

Peremptory International Legal Norms and the Democratic Rule of Law

Peremptory International Legal Norms and the Democratic Rule of Law
Author: Sonja Grover
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 262
Release: 2020-05-21
Genre: Law
ISBN: 100073157X

Peremptory International Legal Norms and the Democratic Rule of Law explores the risks to the democratic State inherent in the attempt to divorce the notion of democratic rule of law from respect for and adherence to peremptory international legal norms which allow for no derogation therefrom such as the prohibition of torture and inhumane treatment or punishment by the State. The chapters address, with specific current case examples, in what ways the democratic rule of law within certain democratic States risks being undermined through those States acquiescing to the erosion of peremptory international law norms in the domestic and international context. The book therefore explores the question of in what ways such democratic State acquiescence in effect may ultimately disrupt the investment within the State in the shared culture of core human rights values that underlies democratic rule of law itself and highlights the fragility of that shared culture. The contributors argue for a renewed commitment in principle and practice to the democratic rule of law and to its human rights international normative underpinnings. Peremptory International Legal Norms and the Democratic Rule of Law will be of great interest to scholars of international law, human rights and democracy. The chapters originally published as a special issue of The International Journal of Human Rights.

Determinants of Democratization

Determinants of Democratization
Author: Jan Teorell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 221
Release: 2010-10-28
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1139492519

What are the determinants of democratization? Do the factors that move countries toward democracy also help them refrain from backsliding toward autocracy? This book attempts to answer these questions through a combination of a statistical analysis of social, economic, and international determinants of regime change in 165 countries around the world in 1972–2006, and case study work on nine episodes of democratization occurring in Argentina, Bolivia, Hungary, Nepal, Peru, the Philippines, South Africa, Turkey, and Uruguay. The findings suggest that democracy is promoted by long-term structural forces such as economic prosperity, but also by peaceful popular uprisings and the institutional setup of authoritarian regimes. In the short-run, however, elite actors may play a key role, particularly through the importance of intra-regime splits. Jan Teorell argues that these results have important repercussions both for current theories of democratization and for the international community's effort in developing policies for democracy promotion.

The International Dimensions of Democratization in Egypt

The International Dimensions of Democratization in Egypt
Author: Gamal M. Selim
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 183
Release: 2015-06-29
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 3319167006

This book purports to examine the international dimensions of the democratization process in Egypt in the post Cold War era; a theme which acquired significance at the academic and policy-oriented levels in light of the growing internationalization of reform arrangements in the Arab world in post 9/11 and the greater involvement of external powers in Arab politics following the Arab Spring uprisings. During the second half of the twentieth century, the mainstream scholarship presented the democratization process as the outcome of domestic conditions not significantly influenced by actors outside the nation-state. With the end of the Cold War, this perspective was challenged as a result of the third wave of democratization and the subsequent growth of the “good governance” discourse on the agenda of the international development establishment. The new perspective attached a more significant role to external factors in the democratization process than was originally conceptualized.

Democracy, Federalism, the European Revolution, and Global Governance

Democracy, Federalism, the European Revolution, and Global Governance
Author: Andrea Bosco
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 436
Release: 2020-06-10
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1527554457

The European Union is facing today the greatest crisis since its creation. Brexit could mean not only the reversal of its steady enlargement—from 6 to 28 member states—but also the beginning of an inexorable decline leading to its disintegration. However, few today seem to recollect that it was precisely the British who were the first to promulgate the political culture which inspired the European Union’s construction—democracy and federalism—and the first who tried to realise, in June 1940, a European federation on the basis of an Anglo-French union. This volume traces the fundamental stages of the European unification process, placing it in relation to the wider process of world economic and political integration. In particular, it analyses the historical significance of the European Revolution, which is identified in the overcoming of the nation state—namely the modern political formula which institutionalised the political division of mankind—and the birth of the first truly international state. The universal historical significance of the European Revolution lies in its exportability—as for the other great European revolutions—and, therefore, its potential as progressively extensible to all the states of the planet. Europe was indeed the first region of the world where the barriers between national states fell, and a post-national political identity emerged, complementary to national political identities. It is, in fact, in the context of the European Union that democracy beyond the borders of the nation state has first been realized, constituting a guiding principle for global governance.

Democratization in Mali

Democratization in Mali
Author: Robert Pringle
Publisher: United States Institute of Peace Press
Total Pages: 84
Release: 2006
Genre: Political Science
ISBN:

Patronal Politics

Patronal Politics
Author: Henry E. Hale
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 557
Release: 2015
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1107073510

This book proposes a new way of understanding events throughout the world that are usually interpreted as democratization, rising authoritarianism, or revolution. Where the rule of law is weak and corruption pervasive, what may appear to be democratic or authoritarian breakthroughs are often just regular, predictable phases in longer-term cyclic dynamics - patronal politics. This is shown through in-depth narratives of the post-1991 political history of all post-Soviet polities that are not in the European Union. This book also includes chapters on czarist and Soviet history and on global patterns.

Authoritarianism and the Elite Origins of Democracy

Authoritarianism and the Elite Origins of Democracy
Author: Michael Albertus
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 326
Release: 2018-01-25
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 110819642X

This book argues that - in terms of institutional design, the allocation of power and privilege, and the lived experiences of citizens - democracy often does not restart the political game after displacing authoritarianism. Democratic institutions are frequently designed by the outgoing authoritarian regime to shield incumbent elites from the rule of law and give them an unfair advantage over politics and the economy after democratization. Authoritarianism and the Elite Origins of Democracy systematically documents and analyzes the constitutional tools that outgoing authoritarian elites use to accomplish these ends, such as electoral system design, legislative appointments, federalism, legal immunities, constitutional tribunal design, and supermajority thresholds for change. The study provides wide-ranging evidence for these claims using data that spans the globe and dates from 1800 to the present. Albertus and Menaldo also conduct detailed case studies of Chile and Sweden. In doing so, they explain why some democracies successfully overhaul their elite-biased constitutions for more egalitarian social contracts.

Democratic Paths and Trends

Democratic Paths and Trends
Author: Barbara Wejnert
Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2010-07-16
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0857240919

Presents the issues of democratic trends. This title addresses worldwide changes and developments of democratization from historical and contemporary perspectives. It also presents discourses on the diffusion of democracy, paths of democratic transitions, worldwide trends towards democratization, as well as discussion about democracy in retreat.