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The century of the citizen

On this International Day of Democracy 2011, it is time to realise that we are now firmly in the century of the citizen.

This century is sometimes referred to as the ‘Asia-Pacific century’, not least due to the rise of China, thereby giving credence to the notion that development may often take place without democracy. However, when we look at the confluence of events and shifts which have been taking place for over a decade, it is just as much the case that we are living in the century of the citizen. Nothing exemplifies this more than the events of the past nine months in the Arab region.

Over the past decade, we have witnessed a shift of power from the state to the people in an unprecedented way. Globalization has led to the breaking down of national boundaries and the communications revolution has led to the flattening of information hierarchies in societies. People now have access to information as never before, and they are using that information to influence decision-making processes at political level. Individuals and NGOs play ever-increasing roles in policy-making. Popular access to transnational information flows mean that events in one country can rapidly cause ripple effects in another. Information about political decision-making is no longer in the hands of the few but is communicated in real-time around the world. This brings with it a more urgent need for accountability on the part of decision-makers. ‘Back-room politics’ no longer holds as citizens can more easily hold their political leaders to account.

Economic development in many countries has led the rise of the middle classes, who are demanding not just fulfilment of their basic economic needs, but equal access to economic opportunity and to political decision-making. Economic inequality, access to opportunity, and the search for basic freedom and human dignity are huge mobilising forces in many countries. Particularly among young women and men who feel excluded or marginalised by political and economic elites. It was these issues which triggered a vegetable-seller in Tunisia to protest and thereby set in motion the events in the wider Arab world.

This shift of power from the state to the people has been vividly exemplified by these recent changes in the Arab world, as people began to be empowered to take charge of their own political futures. We have also seen this shift in older democracies in Europe and India where unequal access to opportunity has been the cause of citizen-led movements. In Latin America, citizens have expressed freely the need for democracy to deliver for them in their own lives and have demanded that their governments are accountable to their needs. Citizens have become empowered, not only in democracies, but also in autocracies. In China, the rising middle classes are protesting against corruption and demanding equal access to economic opportunity.

So what are the implications of the century of the citizen for democracy?

Recent events reaffirm that the citizen is at the heart of democracy, and that democracy has proven itself central to citizens’ aspirations. Citizens are the driving force for democratic change and international actors should respect their leadership in building their democracies.

The shift of power to the citizen also brings many challenges, not least of which is the need to bridge the gap between popular mobilization and traditional political institutions. While political parties and traditional actors of democracy have been weakened, informal processes of expression and political mobilization are becoming stronger. Young people turn to social media, rather than to democratic institutions, to express their views, vent their frustrations and mobilize. At the same time, democracy cannot deliver without institutions. This means that we need to seek creative new approaches to allow democracy to be strengthened, and not weakened, by the ongoing power shift to the citizen. International actors working with democracy need to reach out to new social groups and to be a source of knowledge for the people, rather than just the elites in society. And most of all, international actors working with democracy need to respect the people and to support their integrity in their own democracy building efforts.

Secretary-General, International IDEA

http://www.idea.int/news/the-century-of-the-citizen.html

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