Council for a Community of Democracies

Independent Organizations Pledge action to promote Democracy
For Immediate Release: July 31, 2002
Contact: Robert R. LaGamma, 202.789.9771

RECENT MEETING IN SEOUL

WASHINGTON, July, 31 - A group of nongovernmental democracy organizations pledged action to promote democracy at a recent planning meeting held in Seoul in advance of the bi-annual Community of Democracies Nongovernmental Forum that will be held in the South Korean capital this November.

In a recent interview, Walter Raymond, Jr., president of the Council for a Community of Democracies; Robert LaGamma, the organization's executive director; and Robert Herman, co-director of the Democracy Coalition Project at the Open Society Institute, said two days of "serious discussions" were held in Seoul (July 16-17), the purpose of which was to discuss the agenda for the November meeting -- and the various "goal and action oriented" panels that will convene there.

Raymond and Herman were at the Seoul planning meeting along with other representatives of the independent sector of the 10 convening countries -- most of them selected because they are recently formed or strengthened democracies. The convening countries are Korea, the United States, India, the Czech Republic, Poland, Chile, Mexico, South Africa, Mali and Portugal.

"For democracy to flourish around the world, you need the support of the private sector, the nongovernmental organizations," said Raymond. Two years ago, "when we met in Warsaw, that was an opportunity to introduce ourselves and get to know one another. It was an initial event, an inaugural meeting. The meeting in Seoul is likely to be more substantive." The purpose of the meeting is not only to promote democracy, but to strengthen bonds among groups in countries already democratic," he added.

"Governments recognize that civil society organizations must be their partners in democratic transitions," Herman said, noting that "there is no such thing as a perfect democracy. A large part of what we will do in Seoul is to swap ideas and talk about lessons learned. Panels will be organized by region as well as by function." In addition, there will be discussion of best practices and measures that should be taken against threats to democracy, he added.

Other topics for the nongovernmental forum's scheduled roundtables include:

Markets and democratic governance
Strengthening political party systems
Corruption and democracy
Democracy, freedom of association and the protection of NGOs
Education for democracy
Local government and democracy
Creating civil societies in closed societies
Media and democracy

"Democracy has made enormous strides," said LaGamma, "but it is fragile. This meeting will consider all the ways we can strengthen it. Never before will so many organizations have come together in order to cooperate in advancing democratic ideas." He said he expects that more than 300 nongovernmental organizations will attend the November meeting in Seoul and that regional balance among the organizations will be a key goal, as far as is possible.

The Community of Democracies Nongovernmental Forum will be held alongside the Community of Democracies Ministerial, a meeting of governments committed to advancing democracy around the world. The governments will be represented by foreign ministers. According to the Korean government, the conference theme for the second ministerial will be: "Democracy: Investing for Peace and Prosperity." The intention is to make real measurable progress before the third ministerial (and the nongovernmental meeting) in Santiago, Chile in 2004.

Two years ago (June 2000), at their first meeting in Warsaw, the governments then assembled endorsed the Warsaw Declaration, a document detailing the many components of full democracy. It is expected that the foreign ministers of up to 100 nations will assemble in Seoul for the second ministerial. Adherence to the principles of the Warsaw Declaration is likely to frame the discussions that will take place November 10-12.

In the case of the nongovernmental forum, organizations working in a much wider range of countries will be invited than just emerging and advanced democracies, said Raymond. "In addition to NGOs from democratic countries, there also will be representatives from countries that are non-democratic, including Iran, Cuba and North Korea, for example," he said, adding that the NGO representatives "will present a list of recommendations related to strengthening democracy to the government officials gathered at the ministerial."

Asked if there will be any discussion about terrorism and the threat of terrorism in relation to democracy at the nongovernmental forum, Herman said, "I expect there will be some discussion along the lines of alliances that may need to be formed with countries that are non-democratic because of other interests in the short term. But let's be clear about the nature of the alliance and the long range importance of promoting democracy."

The current status of democracy in the world was assessed in a U.N. report released last week. The report, titled "Deepening Democracy in a Fragmented World," said that the wave of democracy that swept the world during the past two decades has stalled. The world is more democratic than ever before, but just 82 countries of nearly 200 examined are considered full democracies, it concludes. The report underlines the need for the November meeting in Seoul, Raymond, LaGamma and Herman said.

The Council for a Community of Democracies is a private, Washington-based advocacy group chaired by ex-U.S. ambassador to NATO, Robert Hunter. The council president is Walter Raymond, Jr. who is a former official of the National Security Council. It is funded by various foundations.

The Korean website for the ministerial meeting is www.cd2002.go.kr. The Non-governmental Forum is planning its own Web site.