Plan for Today: Globalization, Diffusion, and the Snowball Effect

1. Plan for Today: Globalization, Diffusion, and the Snowball Effect • Conclude on international factors that may encourage democratization. • International norms, conventions, IO membership. • Decolonization. • Economic globalization (?). • Learn how indirect international factors may discouragedemocratization.

2. International Norms and Conventions • Governments sign international conventions that demand democratic behaviour, with no intention of complying. • Domestic opposition forces then demand compliance with international standards. • E.g. USSR & Helsinki Accords (1975).

3. International Norms and Conventions • “Democracy” as universal international norm. • China, Iran, North Korea, Zimbabwe, Libya call themselves democracies – potential fuel for domestic mobilization. • Now anti-democracy coalition developing to change norm?

4. International Norms and Conventions • Desire to join international organizations  incentive for democratic consolidation. • E.g. European Union candidates. • Variations among international organizations in whether inclusive (socialize through membership) or exclusive (reward for reaching standards).

5. Effects of Decolonization • Retreat of colonizing power creates necessary condition for democracy. • Eastern Europe 1989: USSR would not intervene to suppress opposition. • Cases with earlier colonial powers not so clear.

6. Effects of Economic Globalization (Friedman) • Stringent demands of foreign investors for transparent government and consistent regulation encourage democratization.

7. Effects of Economic Globalization (Friedman) • Investors don’t demand democracy but demand stability, transparency, and protection of private property. • Threat: can always move their money elsewhere.

8. Effects of Economic GlobalizationDo investor demands always encourage democracy? • Historical context: not really. • Natural resource industries particularly indiscriminate due to fixed locations. • But perhaps today’s stock market investors more interested in transparent government than traditional MNCs.

9. International influences that may discourage democracy Declining accountability of government in the globalized world? Loss of autonomous economic decisionmaking power. Influence of transnational NGOs.

10. Loss of autonomous decisionmaking power • Governments must balance budgets, lower taxes, cut spending due to global demands. • Governments may be forced to take decisions that diverge from policy platforms they were elected on.

11. Loss of autonomous decisionmaking power • Some claim loss of state sovereignty due to competing authority structures: • Emergence of supra-national institutions: • European Union. • International treaties and organizations: • NAFTA, WTO, IMF

12. Decline of Sovereignty? Therefore Decline of Democracy? • Treaty of Westphalia (1648) established sovereignty principle as governments’ authority to make and enforce rules. • Sovereignty has never meant complete control over cross-border flows.

13. Influence of Transnational NGOs • Extensive transnational networks among NGOs in different countries. • Often lobbying for an arguably pro-democratic cause: protection of individuals’ rights. • But is this really democratic, without comparable influence from local citizens? • E.g. environmentally destructive development projects (Case: Narmada dam, India).

14. Summing Up • International factors encouragingdemocracy: • Demonstration/ snowball effects. • International norms & laws. • Decolonization. • Economic globalization: foreign investor demands (sometimes). • International factors discouraging democracy: • Erosion of government accountability due to loss of economic decisionmaking autonomy, transnational NGO pressure.