2021 The Democracy Summit held by US President Joe Biden on November 9 and 10 at the White House has already captured the world’s attention. Biden has sent invitations to 110 countries. The fundamental question is whether Biden’s method of dividing the world into democracies and anti – democracies is democratic. The question of who gave the American president the title of Guardian of World Democracy is true.
He says very simply what is meant by democracy. Countries where elections take place or countries where voting system is in place to elect officials. If that is what Biden sees as a fundamental measure of democracy, then it is interesting to note that Pakistan is one of the countries to which he sent an invitation. Therefore, this democratic summit cannot be considered as a move to strengthen the democracy of democracies or world democracy in general. On the contrary, at the Democratic Summit, Biden experimented with a strategy of how to isolate China and Russia at once.
The summit was strongly criticized by China and Russia. Ahead of the summit, Chinese spokesman Tian Lin said the Chinese Communist Party condemned the summit. He also said that the Chinese Communist Party was rejecting the notion that the Western democratic model should be accepted by all. In any case, it is true that after the end of the Cold War, all signs of a ‘Cold War’ have begun with the Democratic Summit.
Cold War rhetoric is back. Many observers say this is a ‘recycled’ Cold War era. We know that the Cold War did not contribute much to the world except unnecessary arms racing. By the end of the Cold War, the Soviet Union had disappeared. Moreover, after the Cold War, there was a massive increase in terrorism in the world. In this day and age, the US invasion of the unipolar world has in fact served as the basis for terrorism.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, American imperialism, which had risen to the status of a key player in the world, established that it had the right to send troops anywhere in the world without the permission of the United Nations, or by launching missiles from a distance. As part of that, the United States has killed more than 1.5 million people in the Gulf region (Syria, Iraq, etc.) over the past 20 years. Many other countries say they do not want to hear America’s democratic speech that does not hesitate to send missiles and troops anywhere in the world. In fact, a democratic world based on newthinking must emerge to counter America’s imperialist ambitions and imperialism itself.
China’s anti – US democracy deficit, no matter how covert, is coming out. China has become a superpower, and can be called the world’s second largest power. The trade war between China and the United States that began during the Trump era has turned into the Cold War under Biden. Although the Soviet Union collapsed, Russia did not lag behind the United States in terms of armaments. It is also a fact that Biden & Co.’s strategy of uniting hundreds of countries into the so-called American side of democracy has united Russia and China, which in another sense are not so friendly.
Biden invited countries to the summit based on a review of the Democratic Index of agencies that analyze the quality of democracy in different countries. As such, Biden’s friends, who compile the Index of Democracy, refer to India as the Electoral Autocracy. Although we are proud of being India’s largest democracy, India is a failing democracy in Biden’s analysis.
It can be said that it is a democracy that elects dictators. Modi entered such a summit without any hesitation. He said great big things. Modi spoke in detail about the new media and cryptocurrency. He claimed that there were forms of democracy in India 2500 years ago. No one disputes that. Fortunately, for the last 75 years, Modi’s claim that there is a new democracy in India is our good fortune.
But here, countries like India need to take a clear political stand. Modi may be wondering whether India needs to learn democracy from the United States, which is not reluctant to bomb or send missiles at anyone today, from Hiroshima and Nagasaki to the Middle East. This matter needs to be discussed in Parliament. Although Biden invited Pakistan, he said it was due to Chinese pressure that Pakistan did not attend the summit. This summit is very important for India. China becomes America’s number one enemy, Pakistan becomes China’s relative, Russia, India’s all-time ally, becomes America’s enemy. Putin’s hasty visit at this stage is also noteworthy.
We can say that we are in a vicious circle. While Modi is with the US, India is surrounded by US enemies. It would also be good for the Modi government to realize that our military spending and national security are facing a major challenge when China, America’s number one enemy, and their relative Pakistan, and India’s relative Russia, are now against our friend the United States.
In this context, it is impossible not to mention the statement made by the Communist Party of China. Recently, China, through its Sixth Party Plenum, elected Xi Jinping as General Secretary for the rest of his life, interpreting him as the pinnacle of the mountains and giving him lifelong leadership. China says we have democracy at work. But in China, only one party competes and operates. Democracy in China is like winning a race in which only one person participates.
Progressive movements of the 21st century will find it difficult to succeed if they try to fight against imperialism with such lame democracy. With or without a democratic summit, there is no doubt that such forms of dictatorship will collapse today or tomorrow, in an attempt to follow the dictatorial practices of the mid-20th century, following in the footsteps of the revolution of seven decades ago. Therefore, not only the Chinese Communist Party, but the Communists around the world need to open up to the working class and the common people about the nature of democracy that will emerge if they come to power at a time when imperialism is re-emerging in the new mantle of democracy.
If the Communist Party comes to power will there be a parliament or an independent judiciary and will all media, including social media, be able to function independently? It is also certain that the new generation will not be attracted to the communist movement by the old song of working class dictatorship without answering such questions.
There are people who criticize the American summit from many parts of the world. The world is facing the Kovid epidemic. More than five million people died. The actual death toll could be as high as a million. In this context, instead of branding countries as dictatorships and democracies, the United States, China and any other country must come forward to save human lives and the families of the dead on humanitarian grounds. That is the true taste of democracy. If democracy does not benefit those who die, then what about the mouthpieces.
Similarly, the US stance at the climate summit has been criticized. In this context of environmental catastrophe and epidemic, the US strategy of dividing the world into two groups, democratic and anti – democratic, and keeping more than a hundred countries on its side cannot be said to be intentional. In this context, India needs to be careful that instead of openly allying with the United States, India should become an advocate of a non-violent democracy without joining any of the slums. That is what we started doing during the time of Jawaharlal Nehru. What was not done today under Modi.
In this case, the Biden administration is becoming more and more a continuation of the Trump administration. Trump’s nonsense and nonsense. Regin of errors If the Trump administration has been described as such, then Biden’s administration can be described as a period of political maneuvering. Understand that Trump’s nonsense and Biden’s moderation are, in effect, only in line with the unipolar interests of American imperialism.
Content Highlights: Democracy Summit 2021, C.P.John Column Pratibhashanam
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