The Expert Group on Aid Analysis (EBA) organised an interesting seminar: ‘Political Voices in Times of Democratic backsliding’, where three researchers presented their dissertations linked to the decline of democracy.
- Adea Gafuri, Postdoctoral Researcher at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs presented her research on Aid from Democratic versus Autocratic Donors: Democratisation Processes and Citizens’ Perceptions in Recipient Countries
- Elizaveta Kopacheva, researcher from Linnaeus University presented her research on ‘The resource model of political participation in semi-authoritarian states, A privilege for the privileged’
- Valeriya Mechkova, Assistant Professor and researcher from the University of Gothenburg presented her research on understanding the conditions and consequences of women’s political representation.
Everything was summarised and commented on by Anna Sundström, Secretary General of the Olof Palme International Centre.
Moderated by Malin Oud, Director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute’s Stockholm office and member of the Expert Group for Aid Analysis.
Some interesting lessons from the research
Gafuri highlighted that people in the countries she studied wanted aid but not at any price. This eliminates corruption. The population also has greater confidence in the aid provided by democratic states, as they believe that these are more responsive to the population’s own views. Many people want more aid and would like to see a combination of different types of aid from both democratic and autocratic donors.
Kopacheva highlighted that her research has found that protests in the streets have more impact than social media appeals in transition economies (i.e. economies that are changing from a centrally planned economy to a market economy). Previous activism and socialising that push these issues is a major contributing factor to participation in protests.
Sundström sammanfattade och refererade till Erika Chenoweths forskning som visar att publika protester är det bästa sättet att göra skillnad, liksom att fredliga motståndskampanjer har tio gånger mer sannolikhet att leda till demokratiska förändringar jämfört med våldsamma. Samtidigt ökar chanserna för en förändring ifall att minst 3,5% av befolkningen aktivt deltar i protesterna.
Mechkova emphasised that the inclusion of more women makes a difference in politics IF certain conditions are met, e.g. women have less influence in more corrupt states, regardless of their numbers. At the same time, the sheer number of women in political positions can be used as a ‘gender wash’ for a country to present a more equal front than the reality of the country. Regardless, quotas and a certain percentage of women matter, as it makes it easier to vote for women. However, it also matters who these women are for how much influence they will have.
In conclusion, there are many aspects that influence the strength of political voices for democracy, and as Sundström summarised, now is the right time to act more to strengthen democracy in the world.