Former Spanish President Speaks on the Challenges to Democracy in Latin America

by our correspondent

Washington, (Sept. 14.) Latin America needs to further develop democracy in order to move economic development forward, former Spanish president Felipe González said during a lecture at the Organization of American States on Tuesday, September 13 th .

“Economic policies will not succeed without a stable democratic system,” González said.

Democracy has become wide-spread in Latin America, yet many people say it is failing because development as stalled, González said. It is not democracy that has failed, he said, but the government and the politicians that have failed the people.

Democracy does not guarantee good government in the short term, González said. It does guarantee the ability to get rid of a disliked government, which can provide good government over the long run.

“Democracy is a tool for governance and co-existence that can be improved upon,” González said.

In order to improve, Latin American democracies need to become more transparent, more efficient and more focused on serving the people, González said. The systems also have to be changed to make the division of power between the president and the parliament more effective.

“We must make sure democracy becomes more democratic,” González said.

Once stable, Latin American democracies should pursue fiscal policies that favor investment and employment, and develop fiscal and human infrastructure, he said. Above all, income must be distributed evenly and equally.

González' talk was the eighth lecture of the OAS Lecture Series of the Americas . During his fourteen-year tenure as Spain 's president, he established diplomatic relations with Israel and strengthened ties between Spain and Latin America . He currently chairs the Global Progress Foundation and represents Seville in the Spanish Congress of Deputies.