SECRETARY-GENERAL PRAISES IBERO-AMERICAN CONTRIBUTION TO PRACTICE OF DEMOCRACY
Press Release
SG/SM/6385
SECRETARY-GENERAL PRAISES IBERO-AMERICAN CONTRIBUTION TO PRACTICE OF DEMOCRACY
19971107 ADVANCE TEXT Following is the text of Secretary-General Kofi Annan's statement to be delivered tomorrow, 8 November, at the Ibero-American Summit, Margarita Island, Venezuela:The theme of this Ibero-American Summit -- the ethical values of democracy -- is most appropriate, both as to time and place. Across the world, some 120 countries now hold generally free and fair elections, the highest total in history. And the most recent wave of democratization began in this region, in some cases preceding by a decade the tumultuous events of 1989 in Central and Eastern Europe.
Indeed, the Ibero-American contribution to the practice of democracy not only is altering the socio-political and economic landscape of your region; it also serves as an exemplar of democratization in action for nations elsewhere. And it enriches the very discourse of democracy.
Prior to the swelling of the most recent wave of democratization, democratic institutions, in many instances, were honoured in form more than in substance. In some cases, democratic rule was seen as a luxury that developing countries, in particular, could not yet afford, or even as an outright impediment to their economic progress. Furthermore, the justifications for democratic rule frequently felt alien to many who had been exploited by the imperialism of those who propagated these values.
Your struggle and your experience has helped transform this discourse. You showed that democracy can deliver: in the South no less than the North. You showed that effective, transparent, accountable and participatory government, subject to the rule of law, needs to underpin sustainable economic development, not languish as a distant promise.
Your experience has also demonstrated that the process of democratic transition can be difficult. And yet, continued dedication to the goals, as well as patience with the means, remains the only viable course. For there can be no sustained development of the people, for the people and by the people if their governments are not so constituted.
- 2 - Press Release SG/SM/6385 7 November 1997
We at the United Nations are proud to have been able to assist you in these noble endeavours. Many of our programmes to promote good governance, protect human rights, provide electoral assistance, facilitate post-conflict peace-building and, of course, to foster development, first took root in the Ibero-American world. In addition, our peacekeeping missions in several instances contributed to the stability that made democratic transitions possible.
At the same time, we must acknowledge that further challenges lie ahead and devise the means to meet them. Two stand out above all others.
The first is to consolidate democratic gains. In many instances, newly democratized political institutions remain fragile, and civil society even more so. Strengthening political institutions involves creating more effective and responsive legislatures, more independent judiciaries, and more accountable bureaucracies.
A robust civil society, in turn, requires a culture of participation for all members of society, including women and minorities. And it must represent a civic space, embodying civic values, that can perform a balancing role vis-à-vis the State and private sector alike.
Even as many of the new and restored democracies are engaged in the process of democratic consolidation, a very different challenge is emerging for which there is neither historical precedent nor philosophical guidance. It is generated by the forces of globalization.
Historically, the locus of democratic theory and practice has been "the people" in a delimited territory. Globalization in some respects renders that locus problematic. What is the meaning of participation and consent when forces beyond borders weigh heavily on internal outcomes? What is the scope of citizenship and of citizenship rights? To whom should transnational forms of socio-economic organization be held accountable? And how should that accountability be structured?
I hasten to add that the issue here is not one of world government, which is as impractical as it is undesirable. Rather, the issue is devising more inclusive forms of democratic control, permitting the democratic reach to extend beyond borders in order to supplement its flowering within national political communities.
The challenges we face as public servants are enormous, the obstacles considerable, the criticisms bountiful, the clear-cut successes elusive. Yet, how fortunate we are to serve at this moment in history, for the moment is truly historic. We have the opportunity to reshape not only the entities we lead, but the parts they play in devising the newest institutional forms yet in a quest that goes back through the millennia: giving political expression to the sanctity of human dignity.
Permit me to wish you -- to wish all of us -- the courage and endurance that stems from the knowledge that our cause is just.
* *** *