Democracy in the Third World (review)

Explaining democracy and its evolution in the third world is a far more daunting task than accounting for its absence, the basic difficulty being conceptualizing the term “democracy.” Pinkney initially addresses this difficulty by presenting the inevitable controversy about the nature and objectives of democracy. ¹Having defined and categorized different forms of democracy (chapter one), he contends that the late twentieth century has, on the grounds of experimentation and efficacy, come to lean toward some kind of “liberal democracy” as a necessary phase along the road to true democracy. Likewise, radical, guided, and socialist versions of democracy have been proven ineffectual. ²

The conversion to “liberal democracy,” however, demands conditions conducive to its emergence. Many third world countries have not enjoyed the prolonged economic development, civic culture, institution-building, and social consensus necessary for democracy’s effective operation. Hence, one must remember that “Third World countries are not just poorer versions of those in the First World, or imitations of those countries as they existed a century ago” ³and that “[i]t may in the end be the external factors that will do the most to provide a democratic opening. . . .” ⁴Likewise, democracy in the third world, where it exists, “does not appear to have sprung from the same roots as in the West.” ⁵Thus, one can easily dismiss the applicability of the notions widely publicized in Western academic circles since Lipset’s contribution in the late 1950s on the prerequisites for democracy.

Third world countries’ success in establishing and consolidating democracy lies in their ability to learn from other countries’ experiences and in the willingness of external actors to offer assistance when necessary. Even when the colonial empires disintegrated, the varied after-effects of colonial rule continued to constrain the incipient democracies. Post-independence politics clearly lacked democratic consensus as third world countries were left with limited democratic assets on which to draw at the dawn of independence (chapter three).

Chapter four draws an important dis-tinction between “evolved” and “planted” democracies in the third world. The contrast between the two along economic, social, institutional, behavioral, military, and external lines is instructive. The discussions here, linking many factors to the undermining of democracy, dovetail nicely with the choice and structure explanations widely used in the field—a point that the author acknowledges in his concluding remarks on democracy’s eclipse. ⁶While not shrinking from mentioning cultural variables here, this chapter sheds little light on cultural and religious factors. Furthermore, the analysis here fails to explain so-called “imposed democratization” (from without), that is, imposing democracy on a country by various international pressures and expectations (consider, for example, the case of El Salvador).

In a search for common ground, chapter five examines a series of conditions necessary for the survival of democracy in several third world countries. He finds at least four such conditions: “the minimal disruption associated with the transfer of power at independence, the qualities of national leaders, the limited degree of political polarization, and the existence of state structures that were strong enough to maintain stability without being strong enough to suppress dissent.” ⁷These, by the author’s admission, can only be regarded as “reinforcing” and not “causal” as they lay a foundation upon which future democrats may be able to build, despite the fact that mass poverty and domination by economic elites may continue to exist alongside the electoral process. Here, the reader remains unclear as to how the electoral process would maintain its legitimacy in the face of continued abject poverty and the economic preponderance of certain classes.

As to why a growing number of third world countries have attempted the transition from authoritarianism to democracy, chapter six seeks an understanding of three processes: the sowing of the seeds of challenge to the authoritarian regime, the articulation of interests, and the resolution of conflicts between the main contenders. ⁸The first process, that is, the forces which have undermined authoritarianism, is fully examined in this chapter. The seeds...