Democracy Challenged: The Rise of Semi-Authoritarianism / Edition 1

by Marina Ottaway

Overview

During the 1990s, international democracy promotion efforts led to the establishment of numerous regimes that cannot be easily classified as either authoritarian or democratic. They display characteristics of each, in short they are semi-authoritarian regimes. These regimes pose a considerable challenge to U.S. policymakers because the superficial stability of many semi-authoritarian regimes usually masks severe problems that need to be solved lest they lead to a future crisis. Additionally, these regimes call into question some of the ideas about democratic transitions that underpin the democracy promotion strategies of the United States and other Western countries. Despite their growing importance, semi-authoritarian regimes have not received systematic attention. Marina Ottaway examines five countries (Egypt, Azerbaijan, Venezuela, Croatia, and Senegal) which highlight the distinctive features of semi-authoritarianism and the special challenge each poses to policymakers. She explains why the dominant approach to democracy promotion isn't effective in these countries and concludes by suggesting alternative policies. Marina Ottaway is senior associate and codirector of the Democracy and Rule of Law Project at the Carnegie Endowment.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780870031953
Publisher:	Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Publication date:	12/31/2002
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.63(d)

About the Author

Marina Ottaway is a senior associate in the Democracy and Rule of Law program and director of the Carnegie Middle East program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Table of Contents

	Foreword	vi
	Acknowledgments	viii
	The Challenges of Semi-Authoritarianism: An Introduction	3
Part 1	Varieties of Semi-Authoritarianism	29
1	Egypt: Institutionalized Semi-Authoritarianism	31
2	Azerbaijan: The Semi-Authoritarianism of Decay	51
3	Venezuela: Democratic Decay	71
4	Senegal: Democracy as "Alternance"	91
5	Croatia: Toward a Second Transition	109
Part 2	Why Semi-Authoritarianism?	131
	Introduction	133
6	Games Semi-Authoritarian Regimes Play	137
7	Beyond Games: Looking at Structural Obstacles	161
Part 3	Intervening in Semi-Authoritarian States	191
	Introduction	193
8	The Record So Far	195
9	Looking to the Future	225
	Notes	255
	Bibliography	271
	Index	275
	About the Author	287
	Carnegie Endowment for International Peace	288

Editorial Reviews

"[excerpt from book]" —Marina Ottaway, The Chronicle of Higher Education, 2/7/2002

"[An] important new study..." —G. John Ikenberry, Foreign Affairs, 5/1/2003

From the Publisher

In this important new study, Ottaway argues that countries that combine elements of authoritarianism and democracy are not best understood as imperfect democracies or transitional governments. Instead, she sees them as deliberately organized and durable regimes that adopt the formal trappings of democracy but allow little real competition for power. Kazakhstan, Morocco, Peru, Singapore, and Malaysia are examples of a growing number of semi-authoritarian regimes that can be remarkably stable, yet are also prone to unpredictable political and leadership succession crises. Ottaway argues that these hybrid regimes require a rethinking of assumptions about the spread and promotion of democracy. These are not countries that will respond easily to outside carrots and sticks. Their civil societies tend to be disconnected from politics, and the creation of more open civic space can lead to ethnic nationalism (as in Yugoslavia), or religious fundamentalism (as in Egypt). The challenge for democracy promoters is to focus more on deep socioeconomic sources of semi-authoritarianism and adjust the timeline for democratic progress.

Foreign Affairs