Breathe
By Lourdes Encinas
"Which way is the world going? The world is going to the right. The democratic hangover has ended in weariness." (Excerpt from the inaugural article of the magazine Gerarchia in February 1922, authored by Benito Mussolini, quoted by Antonio Scurati in his book M. The Son of the Century.
I always thought that if communications had been more advanced to spread more quickly the atrocities of Hitler and the Axis forces, the world would have acted sooner and more forcefully to stop them. But the current reality burst that bubble for me.
Communications have an unprecedented global reach that has allowed us to witness in real time the rise of authoritarian leaders who could overcome such atrocities, as well as humanitarian crises that we watch with indifference.
Recent history is littered with examples where the international community has been slow to intervene or simply failed to do so, such as in Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Nicaragua, Haiti, Venezuela and Palestine, among others.
This global inaction is due to a combination of factors including indifference, geopolitical complexity, economic interests, the weakening of international organizations and propaganda amplified by algorithms.
However, the most worrying aspect seems to me to be another one: the growing public sympathy for authoritarianism.
The appeal of "effective authoritarianism
Several studies on the state of democracy in the world coincide in pointing out its weakening and the resurgence of authoritarian regimes that restrict rights and freedoms. (Here are some examples: https://ourworldindata.org/democracy ).
- The Economist's Global Democracy Index reported a worldwide decline from a total score of 5.55 in 2008 to 5.23 in 2023.
- The Regimes of the World ranking shows that the number of democratic countries in the world peaked in 2016, with 95 electoral democracies, but fell to 91 in 2023. The same was true for liberal democracies, which dropped from 43 in 2012 to 32 in 2023.
- Latinobarómetro 2024 indicates that preferences for an authoritarian regime in the region have remained stable over the last 30 years, with fluctuations between 19% in 2011 and 13% in 2020.
It also highlights that in Latin American countries, preferences for a non-democratic but problem-solving government have grown from 44% in 2002 to 53% in 2024.
We are at a time when people no longer elect rulers in spite of their authoritarian traits, but precisely because of them. The rhetoric of a strong, nationalistic ruler who promises to improve the quality of life through radical decisions is winning.
Thus, in Mexico we return to a single-party regime with absolute control; in the United States, Donald Trump is reelected with his promise to recover the "lost greatness", while in Germany the far-right Alternative for Germany party is making electoral progress.
These narratives resonate in persistent inequality, insecurity and corruption, as democratic governments have failed to deliver on their promise to build more equitable and prosperous societies.
Those of us who grew up in relatively democratic systems also failed to transmit its importance to new generations. Worse, we failed to demonstrate that, despite its imperfections, democracy is the best system for protecting human rights and resolving conflicts peacefully.
Today, with the rise of authoritarian leaders offering simplistic solutions to complex problems, we must remember that history shows the high price of sacrificing liberties for promises of order and progress.
The real tragedy is not only that we would not stop a new Hitler, but that, perhaps, many would hail him as a savior.
The opinions expressed are the responsibility of the authors and are absolutely independent of the position and editorial line of the company. Opinion 51.
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