Let's not spread democracy

Say Bob Weiner & John Larmett in Challenge to Bush Foreign Policy Premise from Cuba to Iraq to Russia

By Robert Weiner and John Larmett - Now that Fidel Castro has finally (Dec. 17) openly suggested that he might permanently relinquish his post following surgery for intestinal problems more than 16 months ago, the U.S. government needs to determine how to best benefit Americans and Cubans with real policies, not myths and wish lists about the "democracy" which still might not come. In a letter shown on Cuban television, Castro said that he would not "cling to office" or obstruct the rise of a new generation of leaders.

President Bush has stated, "We are working for the day of freedom in Cuba." The State Department hopes that "such a liberation from Fidel Castro's brutal communist dictatorship will inspire a new political order based on national reconciliation, the rule of law, personal choice, and equal justice and opportunity for all." Yet after almost 50 years, Fidel simply has (as he said he would all along) turned over the government to his younger brother, Raul, who has been indicted by the U.S. Justice Department for drug smuggling and human rights violations. Given that history, Raul could prove to be even more dangerous. Whatever our Cuba policy, it hasn't worked.

President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice have repeatedly declared that the United States is committed to spreading democracy. As the president stated on Nov. 9, "Our nation remains committed to the advance of freedom and democracy as the great alternatives to repression and radicalism."

Unlike Berlin's in 1989, not all walls can easily be "torn down," nor should they be. Regrettably to us, people who live in many other countries do not want democracy.

In Iraq, President Bush says the war is necessary because we are "spreading democracy" in the region. The rebellion against U.S. forces and our Iraqi and international allies is in itself a powerful backlash against Western-imposed democracy on a society that has never known nor wanted American democratic values.

We insisted that Palestinians hold elections this year, against their leaders' wishes. Hamas extremists, committed to violence in their platform, won the election.

Despite the fact that we truly love our own democracy, the framework for our foreign policy cannot be solely, "Is it democratic?" A lot more "in our national interest" and less "is it our form of government" would be useful to the other country and us.

We should have learned that free and fair elections have often led to murderous demagogues and tyrants (witness pre-World War II Germany and Italy), not to the rule of law, the separation of powers, the protection of free speech, even property rights.

More recently, in Russia, Boris Yeltsin came to power in 1991 by free elections and was incredibly popular early on. But Vladimir Putin, whose party was reelected on Dec. 2 and who is about to become prime minister, is using his power to restrict and jail political and economic opposition, blackmail Eastern Europe with oil prices, and restrict human rights - and scientific polls show the vast (80 percent) majority of Russians approve of his performance. Mr. Putin's support likely stems from his having reduced poverty with his new found oil power and restoring the influence of Mother Russia lost at the end of the old USSR.

Free elections brought Slobodan Milosevic to power in Yugoslavia (1990) and Hugo Chávez in Venezuela (1998), both of whom we consider to be outrageous dictators. Leaders such as Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and Pervez Musharraf in Pakistan argue that if they liberalize political dissent as the U.S. pressures them to do, Muslim extremists probably would come to power. While not one of the 22 states of the Arab League is an electoral democracy, the autocrats who rule these countries might be better than the leaders that free elections would bring.

If we want to spread our democracy, advocating the right to secretly torture and invading countries under false pretenses does not help. Let's not export democracy; let's export economic education and leadership in human rights. The United States has the capability to help address the challenges stemming from poverty, hunger, disease, and lack of opportunity in the developing world. We can help countries to establish a stable economy to sustain the rule of law and a government that best suits their needs. A return to bold usage of cultural bonding agencies like the Peace Corps, Vista, and Alliance for Progress would be a giant step forward. We cannot jam democracy down people's throats with troops.

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