In this article, we analyze the nexus between political regimes and external voting rights. Using a global longitudinal dataset, we report that higher levels of inclusion and contestation bring... Show moreIn this article, we analyze the nexus between political regimes and external voting rights. Using a global longitudinal dataset, we report that higher levels of inclusion and contestation bring higher probabilities that a state adopts and implements emigrant enfranchisement. Taking outliers from our quantitative assessment, we then further examine two liberal democracies, Ireland and Uruguay, and two electoral autocracies, Turkey and Venezuela. These country cases reveal three mechanisms that shed light on the strategic role of political elites in explaining the relation between political regime type and emigrant enfranchisement. First, the democracies under study show us that in certain contexts with a relatively large diaspora size and in which part of the political spectrum is hesitant about the political orientation of nonresident citizens, emigrant enfranchisement is neither necessarily promulgated nor implemented. Second, the autocracies illustrate that when the diaspora favors (or is perceived to favor) the incumbency, then external voting rights are extended; otherwise, third, they are withheld or limited for nonresident citizens. Show less
Literature on political vigilante groups has centred on the violence and conflict that emanate from their activities. This article approaches political vigilante groups as political actors who... Show moreLiterature on political vigilante groups has centred on the violence and conflict that emanate from their activities. This article approaches political vigilante groups as political actors who engage in political mobilisation and participation and therewith also contribute to nation state building. It explores how such groups participate in Ghana’s democratic governance and asks whether violence is an inevitable characteristic. The article builds on individual in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with political vigilante group members in Kumasi and Tamale in 2019. Findings show that political vigilante “youth” appeared to refer primarily to the social position attributed to non-elite groups in the political field. Political vigilante groups are multi-faceted in their organisational structures, membership, and activities both during electoral campaigns and during governing periods. While some groups revert to violence occasionally, the study concludes that political vigilante groups, in enabling different voices to be heard, are also contributing to democratic governance. Show less
This report is the second output from the Joint Research Centre’s (JRC) Enlightenment 2.0 multi-annual research programme. The work started with the classical Enlightenment premise that reason is... Show moreThis report is the second output from the Joint Research Centre’s (JRC) Enlightenment 2.0 multi-annual research programme. The work started with the classical Enlightenment premise that reason is the primary source of political authority and legitimacy. Recognising that advances in behavioural, decision and social sciences demonstrate that we are not purely rational beings, we sought to understand the other drivers that influence political decision-making. The first output “Understanding our political nature: how to put knowledge and reason at the heart of policymaking” published in 20191, addressed some of the most pressing political issues of our age. However, some areas that we consider crucial to providing an updated scientific model of the drivers of political decision-making were not fully addressed. One of them is the impact of our contemporary digital information space on the socio-psychological mechanisms of opinion formation, decision-making and political behaviour. The JRC, together with a team of renowned experts addresses this knowledge deficit in a report that synthesises the knowledge about digital technology, democracy and human behaviour to enable policymakers to safeguard a participatory and democratic European future through legislation that aligns with human thinking and behaviour in a digital context. It is hoped that this report will prove useful as policymakers reflect upon the forthcoming European Democracy Action Plan, the Digital Services Act, the EU Citizenship Report 2020, as well as on how to legislate against disinformation. The report has been written in spring/summer of 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of Europe and the world. During this time, our democracies suffered while technology played a crucial role in keeping societies functioning in times of lockdown. From remote distance education to teleworking, religious services to staying in touch with family and friends, for many but not all, everyday activities moved online. Additionally, technological applications and initiatives multiplied in an attempt to limit the spread of the disease, treat patients and facilitate the tasks of overworked essential personnel. Conversely, however, significant fundamental rights questions have been raised as unprecedented initiatives to track, trace and contain the pandemic using digital technologies have proven controversial. Governments invoking emergency measures in support of public health decision-making, used advanced analytics to collect, process and share data for effective front-line responses that lacked transparency and public consultation. When used as an information source, social media have been found to present a health risk that is partly due to their role as disseminators of health-related conspiracies, with non-English language speakers being at greater risk of exposure to misinformation during the crisis. It is likely that these technologies will have a long-lasting impact beyond COVID-19. Yet despite the immediacy of the crisis, the authors invite the reader to take a longer perspective on technology and democracy to get a deeper understanding of the interrelated nuances. In dark times, we seek to bring light to the importance of understanding the influence of online technologies on political behaviour and decision-making. Show less
Hoe kiezen we wat de school moet meegeven aan de volgende generatie, als elke groep in de samenleving daar anders over denkt? Waarom mag de één wel met steun van de overheid programma's maken voor... Show moreHoe kiezen we wat de school moet meegeven aan de volgende generatie, als elke groep in de samenleving daar anders over denkt? Waarom mag de één wel met steun van de overheid programma's maken voor omroep of theater, en de ander niet? Wat moet worden onderzocht als niet elk onderzoek kan worden betaald? In een land waar geen enkele meerderheid zomaar zijn wil kan opleggen, zijn dat lastige vragen. "In de regel vrij" laat zien hoe Nederland in de afgelopen eeuw op eigen wijze vorm gaf aan onderwijs, cultuur en wetenschap. Een bijzondere ervaring, die bij de vraagstukken van de toekomst nog van nut kan zijn. Dit toegankelijke en rijk geïllustreerde boek verschijnt bij het honderdjarig bestaan van het ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschap. Het beschrijft een eeuw in thema's, van burgerschap tot wetenschap en van media tot Mammoetwet. Daarnaast bevat het bijzondere interviews met alle oud-ministers sinds 1973. Show less
This paper describes the development process of voting behavior in Chile; particularly the relationship between the class voting theory and the theory of cultural post-materialist vote is... Show moreThis paper describes the development process of voting behavior in Chile; particularly the relationship between the class voting theory and the theory of cultural post-materialist vote is investigated. This research deals with Chile as a case study, a developing country with a relatively stable democracy since 1990 and although it has been mentioned in various investigations, has not been given the depth and perspective necessary to understand the political scene in which their electoral processes are developed. We seek to test the relationship between socioeconomic status of voters, their post-materialist values and the results of the elections in which they participate. Show less
Democratie van onderaf: het is even verleidelijk als problematisch. Dat zien we niet alleen bij de Occupy-beweging en de Arabische lente, maar ook in de geschiedenis. In 1848 trok een golf van... Show moreDemocratie van onderaf: het is even verleidelijk als problematisch. Dat zien we niet alleen bij de Occupy-beweging en de Arabische lente, maar ook in de geschiedenis. In 1848 trok een golf van revoluties over ons continent. Plotseling kregen miljoenen Europeanen de kans hun stem te laten horen in drukbezochte volksvergaderingen en politieke clubs. In dit moment van gekte leek even alles mogelijk. De toekomst lag open. 1848 – Clubkoorts en revolutie neemt de lezer mee naar de onrustige steden Parijs en Berlijn, twee brandpunten van de ‘Europese lente’. Geerten Waling schetst de dromen en verwachtingen achter de honderden democratische experimenten die er een nieuw publiek debat creëerden. En de politieke realiteit waarmee zij werden geconfronteerd. De revoluties van 1848 werden uiteindelijk allemaal neergeslagen of doofden uit, maar de ervaringen van dat jaar zouden de politieke cultuur in Europa blijvend veranderen. Ze maakten de moderne democratieën mogelijk die wij tegenwoordig als vanzelfsprekend beschouwen. Show less
This chapter revisits the issue of elections and democracy in Africa, a theme that emerged as dominant in scholarly discussions in African Studies in the 1990s. The trigger for featuring Ethiopia... Show moreThis chapter revisits the issue of elections and democracy in Africa, a theme that emerged as dominant in scholarly discussions in African Studies in the 1990s. The trigger for featuring Ethiopia as a case study was the May 2010 parliamentary elections when the incumbent party, which had been in power since 1991, took 99.6% of all the seats. While the various Ethiopian elections will not be discussed in detail, the political culture or wider context in which they occur - and always produce the same overall result - will be highlighted to demonstrate the enduring mechanisms and problems of hegemonic rule and how difficult it is to create a democratic system that allows for changes in power (i.e. alternation). The relationship between one-party rule and economic development will also be discussed - the latter being a donor obsession that clouds the political agenda. The chapter closes with some reflections on the recurring donor-country dilemmas when it comes to dealing with electoral autocracies, such as Ethiopia. Show less
Democracy is about competing "truths". This is why "rhetoric"- the study of public deliberation and the training in public debate and argumentation - is part of democracy in development. This... Show moreDemocracy is about competing "truths". This is why "rhetoric"- the study of public deliberation and the training in public debate and argumentation - is part of democracy in development. This volume acclimatizes "rhetoric" to the philosophical scene in South Africa, and more in general in Africa as a whole, and reflects on the emergence of public deliberation in the South African democracy through a reading of the 1995-1998 Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in terms of Aristotelian rhetoric. Four papers (part 1) tackle, from four different angles, the re-telling of private truths about a public regimen of affairs in front of the TRC. In Part 2, public deliberation and the fashioning of truth are approached from a variety of perspectives, examples and situations of "rhetorical democracy" from elsewhere in Africa (Nigeria) and beyond. Part 3 offers examples of how rhetoric may be brought to bear upon politics in order to understand how dialogue between different levels of agency creates democratic negotiation and, in the process, shapes policy, as for example in the case of the African Renaissance, the land redistribution programme in postapartheid South Africa and the 1991 National Conference of Congo-Brazzaville. The volume closes on a philosophical analysis of the "ethical" dimension inherent to public deliberation as well as to the contest of beliefs, and on an examination of the volume's contents in the light of long-standing concerns of African philosophy and of the journal 'Quest'. Contributors: Charles Calder, Barbara Cassin, Mary Jane Collier, Erik Doxtader, Eugene Garver, Yehoshua Gitay, Lisa Hajjar, Darrin Hicks, Johnson Segun Ige, Abel Kouvouama, Andrea Lollini, Reingard Nethersole, Sanya Osha, Philippe-Joseph Salazar, Lydia Samarbakhsh-Liberge, Wim van Binsbergen, Charles Villa-Vicencio. [ASC Leiden abstract] Show less
This chapter examines what democratic transition in the 1990s has meant for women in southern Africa. It focuses in particular on the impact of democratization processes on political participation... Show moreThis chapter examines what democratic transition in the 1990s has meant for women in southern Africa. It focuses in particular on the impact of democratization processes on political participation by women, notably women's representation in parliament in Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. This is compared with developments in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, where the introduction of multiparty elections has generally resulted in women's marginalization in parliament. Comparison of the representation of women in parliament in the SADC region under the one-party State and after the democratic transition reveals that the tendency is towards better representation of women. Factors impacting on the representation of women in politics include a country's state of development, the quota system, women's pressure groups, and electoral systems. Linking the UNDP's gender-related development index (1998) to the representation in parliament-index, the author concludes that there is no visible relationship between women's representation in parliament and the quality of life for women in southern Africa. Notes, ref Show less
This chapter presents an overview of the media in Kenya as it stands today, focussing on the role of the media in the process of democratization. It first sketches the Kenyan media landscape as it... Show moreThis chapter presents an overview of the media in Kenya as it stands today, focussing on the role of the media in the process of democratization. It first sketches the Kenyan media landscape as it developed since 1902, when the first newspaper was established in the then British headquarters for East Africa, the town of Mombasa. It discusses the impact of the 1992 'liberalization' of the Kenyan media, demonstrating that in addition to growth in the number of publications and broadcast stations, a qualitative change in content is evident, particularly in the print media. However, although press freedom has improved, regulatory and policy measures affecting the media should still be characterized as restrictive. The chapter then focuses on media coverage of the 1997 elections, distinguishing between two aspects: the game of strategy, and the substance of the elections. It also pays attention to the role of journalists in the debate about the need for constitutional change and the Media Watch project, whose main objective was to monitor the State-owned Kenya Broadcasting Corporation radio and television during the pre-election period. Show less
This book brings together studies on the broad theme of elections and democratization in Africa since roughly 1989. It is based on a seminar held in The Netherlands in February 1997, and includes... Show moreThis book brings together studies on the broad theme of elections and democratization in Africa since roughly 1989. It is based on a seminar held in The Netherlands in February 1997, and includes chapters on both electoral processes, especially the role of foreign observers therein, and the historical and sociocultural backgrounds or contexts of democratization, elections and political legitimacy. Part 1 deals with elections and election observation in Africa in general (contributions by O. van Cranenburgh, S. Ellis, I. van Kessel, B. de Gaay Fortman). Part 2 consists of country studies (M. Doornbos on Uganda, D. Foeken en T. Dietz on Kenya, J. Abbink on Ethiopia, R. van Dijk on Malawi, R. Buijtenhuijs on Chad, and M.-F. Lange on Mali). Part 3 includes a chapter that reflects the discussions held at the seminar between observers, academics and policymakers in the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (W. van Binsbergen en J. Abbink); a review of Dutch policies on election observation in Africa during the period 1992-1997 (O. van Cranenburgh); and a discussion of the 1997 general elections in Kenya, where a new approach of election observation was introduced (M. Rutten). Show less
