Project on Middle East Democracy

Project on Middle East Democracy
The POMED Wire


2008: Holbrooke On Democracy Promotion In Foreign Affairs

August 27th, 2008 by Matt

In a piece in the current issue of Foreign Affairs, Richard Holbrooke takes a look at the “daunting agenda” facing America’s next president, evaluating the McCain and Obama platforms in the process.  Holbrooke focuses on a critical five-country arc where Bush administration policies have failed, requiring immediate attention from the new administration–Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.  Holbrooke laments (among other things) inconsistent democracy promotion policies in this region, and indeed recommends a major modification of the very idea of democracy promotion.  Money quote:

“Bush did the dream of democracy a huge disservice by linking it to the assertion of U.S. military power. Pressuring other countries to adopt the superficial aspects of a complex and subtle system of governance is simply not the route to follow in promoting American values or security interests. Yet the goal is correct and should not be abandoned — only presented in a style and a tone far more sensitive to how it is perceived in other lands.”

His solution:

“focus more on human rights (a phrase curiously absent from the Bush lexicon) and basic human needs while still encouraging the development of democratic forms of government, accompanied by the evolution of a pluralist political culture, the rule of law, and improvements in material conditions, especially through job creation. If there is progress in these areas, democracy will follow, in ways that countries will determine for themselves — with U.S. encouragement.”


Posted in Democracy Promotion, Election 08, US foreign policy, US politics |

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