Posted on 10/20/2001 6:46:49 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Is there ``democratic fatigue'' in Latin America? Is disillusion over free-market economic reform translating into a general frustration with Western-styled democracy?
It's a question that is gaining ground in regional diplomatic circles following Sunday's legislative elections in Argentina, where -- despite mandatory voting laws -- 42 percent of registered voters cast null-and-void votes or abstained from voting.
It was the biggest protest vote since Argentina returned to democracy in 1983. And it comes after record abstention and nullified voting levels in recent elections in Peru, Venezuela and Brazil.
``Today, the biggest risks to democracy in Latin America are not military coups, but failure of growing numbers of people to participate in the democratic process,'' said Rosendo Fraga, an Argentine political analyst. ``This may affect the legitimacy of our democratic systems.''
In Argentina, President Fernando de la Rúa's government readily admitted that the voting levels reflect anger over a three-year economic recession, a nearly 20 percent unemployment rate, and a consensus that politicians are spending too much money for themselves and too little for the people.
Economists say Argentina spends at least $2 billion a year -- some say up to $4 billion -- in excess political expenditures. Argentina's Congress, for instance, employs 10,000 people, more than twice the number in the federal congress of Mexico, a country with more than twice the population of Argentina.
In addition, Argentina's provincial legislatures employ another 50,000 workers, many of whom got their jobs as political paybacks and never showed up to work. On average, their salaries are twice the median wage in the private sector, and they can't be fired under current laws.
But Argentina's latest election is not the only recent case of voter fatigue in the region. While voting is mandatory in most Latin American countries, abstention and ``protest'' votes have risen sharply in recent elections.
In Peru's second-round presidential elections last year, 50 percent of registered voters either abstained from voting or cast null-and-void votes. In Venezuela's 2000 reelection of President Hugo Chávez, more than 43 percent of voters abstained. In Brazil's 1998 presidential elections, 48 percent of voters either abstained or cast null-and-void votes.
Are there reasons for alarm or are Latin American voters simply doing what so many American voters do, which is to stay away from the polls? If you consider Latin America's tragic history of military regimes that took power arguing that democracy had failed, there is a lot to worry about.
Consider the results of a poll released earlier this year by Latinobarometro, a Santiago, Chile-based firm that did a survey or more than 17,000 people throughout the region:
For the first time, support for democracy in Latin American countries, which had remained more or less stagnant at 60 percent, dropped in 2000 to 48 percent of those surveyed. In some countries, such as El Salvador, only 25 percent of the people answered positively to the pollsters' assertion that ``Democracy is preferable to any other form of government.''
Asked whether they are satisfied with democracy, only 25 percent of Latin Americans responded positively last year, down from 37 percent in the mid-1990s.
Asked about the institutions they trust most, 76 percent cited the church, followed by 70 percent who cited television and 42 percent who cited the military. The least-trusted institution was political parties, which only received 20 percent positive mention.
``These figures should serve as a wake-up call,'' said Daniel Zovatto, a Costa Rica-based official of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, and publisher of the website www.observatorioelectoral.org ``Dissatisfaction with democracy is not yet translating into support for military regimes, but it's a phenomenon we should be watching very closely.''
What should be done? Some analysts agree that Latin American countries urgently need to carry out political reforms, such as reducing excess political expenditures, stepping up the fight against corruption, implementing campaign finance laws and making legislators more accountable to their constituents.
In many countries, you can't vote for an individual legislator, Zovatto said. Under current laws, you have to vote for the entire list of candidates from a party, so there is no connection between the voters and any particular legislator.
My conclusion: I agree that, for the time being, there is little danger that Argentina's protest vote will translate into a return to the dark days of military coups in that country, or elsewhere in the region.
But that's only because the democratically elected presidents now in power belong to a generation that remembers the atrocities committed by military regimes. Barring political reforms, once the next generations move up the political ladder, it may be an entirely different story.
Two possibilities.
1. Strong arm tactics to suppress exciting campaigners.
2. No exciting campaigners to be had.
IMO, a lack of voting is due to a lack of turmoil. In a way, that is good for a REPUBLIC. It stops a lot of emotionalism and the only people who vote are those who really care. People who care are more informed.
If people are mad enough to fight, they are mad enough to cast a vote. Duh.
My conclusion: People who cast a null and void vote serve their country well. They know they aren't informed enough to cast an intelligent vote. Here in the US, there is too much blind partizanship by the uninformed, while the highly informed are so frustrated they peel off into new, longshot experiments.
Isn't it the same in the USA .How many non-voters do we have ? Legions .
It also shows how an uneducated electorate can be useful to elites and dictators.
See Joseph R. Stromberg's review of Hans Hermann-Hoppe's latest book, Democracy: The God that Failed.
LOL. Talk about seeing the glass as half empty! Obviously, a Republic is not perfect. And no, I don't worship my Republic as a god. But I do cherish this Republic as though it were my great great grandfather, still living, with countless medals and trophies in his den.
You see failure. I see not only the past, but the potential for a bright future. Imagine how much government will change as we become more of a cyber-republic. If nothing major changes on the internet and in government, the leeches are doomed.
Imagine a time when 80% of voters spend time on the web reading stats about each candidate and swapping emails with some friends before voting. Imagine that research time mushrooming as people start finding out all the old news that has been supressed. Imagine every House Website having a link to an internet forum where constituents can hash out upcoming bills.
For example, this viagra nonsense. Imagine if I could have confronted a representative about my needs and resentment that my tax/fica money pays for some jerk to get viagra. Never would have happened. Or national endowment for the arts, ripped to shreds in a public forum by critics. Bye bye NEA. Or school choice debates. Partial birth abortion. Gun rights. You name it. Truth wins most of the time on the internet.
We are just getting started, baby! Strap your seatbelt. And get ready for some REAL representation!
The only way to hold back even more freedom is to shut down the internet. God blessed us not only with resources, but with wise and selfless leadership that anticipated the sloth, avarice, and apathy that we have been subjected to. We survived it. Most of us even thrived. And the challenge we face today is nothing compared to what we faced in the '90s.
And as for us being a 'nanny state', all this terrorism is probably going to be a cure for that. People now are forced to put dangers into perspective.
Isn't it great? Too many people simply join the DNC and shut their brains off. I'd much rather that people in the DNC simply admit they are uninformed and stay home.
I have some further interesting freepmail to send you in the near future.
America is different. The democratic components of the US Constitution were put into the Constitution not to create "democracy", but as a way to protect liberty. The goal is individual freedom, the means was democracy. Americans expect to create our wealth and focus most of our attention on things outside of politics and democracy, expect of course for the lefties, who think the source of everything is government. Unfortunately, they never seem to get disillusioned and grow up. Democratic Party pols have been getting the votes of Black Americans for decades now promising goodies through government and blaming racist Republicans. There seems to be no end in sight to this.
Yes! Successful countries and civilzations saw/see the importance and specialness of the individual.
I don't see how it is possible for any country to be like our republic. Our beginnings can not be duplicated.
Is it enough for an existing government to just switch, or does freedom have to be fought for and won?
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