Commentary
Before the next wave of EU enlargement takes place, the union needs to grapple with thorny questions of how power is distributed among its members.
Emil Sondaj Hansen, Ditte Brasso Sørensen
Source: Getty
Paper
Challenges to Democracy Promotion: The Case of Bolivia
Bolivia has embarked on a democratic experiment which differs in significant ways from Western liberal models. While this poses a challenge to traditional democracy promotion efforts, external actors still have the potential to play a constructive role in the country.
By Jonas Wolff
Published on Mar 30, 2011
Bolivia offers a critical, but atypical, case for international democracy promotion. The ongoing political transformation initiated by President Evo Morales constitutes one of the few experiences in the world of a serious effort to build a democracy different from the existing Western liberal models. And this presents a significant challenge to democracy promotion efforts.
The United States and Germany—two main external actors in Bolivia—have been compelled to react to this challenge. In the case of the United States, an initial phase of wait-and-see escalated in 2008 into an open crisis in bilateral relations. Attempts to adjust U.S. democracy assistance to the evolving political situation in Bolivia failed and by the end of 2009 USAID’s democracy program was closed on demand of the Bolivian government. The German government, on the other hand, explicitly supported the political changes initiated by Morales. Bilateral relations between Bolivia and Germany are characterized by general continuity and in terms of democracy assistance Germany largely adjusted its programs to the preferences of the new Bolivian government.
International democracy promoters often argue that they are not trying to impose a specific form of democracy from the outside and Bolivia has tested the U.S. and German commitments to this ideal. In fact, both governments have not stuck dogmatically to their particular models or concepts of democracy, but have shown some surprising flexibility. Negative reactions to Morales, especially in the case of the United States, were actually triggered by disagreements on specific policy issues.
Bolivia’s ongoing democratic transformation suggests that the best external democracy promoters can do under such circumstances is to support processes of inclusive dialogue and constructive conflict resolution. Instead of focusing on a specific political end point—a given model of democracy—support should push for a peaceful and inclusive political process of constructing a model appropriate for Bolivia. This, however, requires external actors to unequivocally respect Bolivia’s claim to democratic self-determination that encompasses not just the shape of its political system but also its foreign, economic, and narcotics policies.
About the Author
Jonas Wolff
Wolff is an executive board member and the head of the Intrastate Conflict research department at the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt.
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- The Uncomfortable Truth About EU Enlargement
- Will the Far Right Change Europe’s Russia Policy?Commentary
The European far right might fail to steer EU policy in the direction Russia wants, but they will create enough chaos inside Europe to benefit the Kremlin.
Dimitar Bechev
- Recasting American Power in Latin AmericaPaper
Washington needs to recognize that influence in the Western Hemisphere comes from presence, delivery, and reliability. It also must recognize that while the United States remains the key external actor, it no longer operates in a permissive environment and cannot presume deference from regional players who have other options, namely China.
Juan S. Gonzalez
- Leaving Russian-Speakers Without Representation Is a Risk for LatviaCommentary
If the Russian-speaking community in Latvia cannot articulate their interests without being seen as disloyal, they could end up embracing a pro-Kremlin agenda.
Sergejs Potapkins
- Putin Has Been a Hindrance, Not a Help, to United Russia’s Election CampaignCommentary
Russia’s ruling party would have benefited from Putin appearing as its distant patron, but as an active frontman imposing his views on the public, he has done nothing but harm both the party’s election campaign and the ruling system overall.
Andrey Pertsev
