Despite a misplaced association with the Iraq war and forcible regime change, democracy promotion has not been abandoned by the Obama administration, writes a former head of USAID.
The President’s speeches in Prague, Cairo, and Accra affirmed a commitment to promoting democracy, while adopting a realist appreciation of the geo-strategic constraints, says Brian Atwood, a board member of the National Democratic Institute.
But the administration now has to match rhetoric with resources and ensure that it is not a marginal consideration in U.S. foreign policy:
The Obama administration ….must now take care to promote democratic change the right way, creatively integrating its sophisticated engagement approach, development strategies, and “smart power” philosophy. This means joining others in supporting democratic change, avoiding any hint of ambivalence even where security seems the overriding immediate concern, and providing resources to civil society organizations to support counterparts in transitional states.
[...] Allen at Democracy Digest has [...]
One place where the Obama administration seems to be completely giving up on democracy is Sudan. The newly released Sudan Policy Review almost fails to mention the upcoming election in April 2010, or how they will be evaluated as credible. Understandable deference is giving to ending the conflict in Darfur and preventing a return to war between the North and South. With that said, there seems to be a deal brewing that would allow Omar al-Bashir to steal the elections in exchange for a possible peace deal in Darfur and the 2011 referendum in the South. These elections would legitimize a regime that has slaughtered hundreds of thousands of its people, and leave those people without any guaranteed future recourse for reform. I have written about this at: http://bit.ly/3nhM3J.