Democratic Transitions: Lessons from World Leaders
On April 19, The Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI) and the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) arranged a seminar on the lessons learned during democratic transitions.
Institutions, activists, political parties, students, women's rights movements, and international actors all have important roles in situations where authoritarian regimes transition into democratic nations. Political leaders, right in the midst of the shift, play crucial roles and have invaluable insight in these progressions.
What have political leaders experienced during transition processes? What would the transitions have looked like without Mandela and de Klerk in South Africa, or Aylwin and Lagos in Chile? What lessons can we learn from past experiences, and how can we apply them to today’s democratic transitions?
Introductory remarks and reflections:
Yves Leterme, Secretary-General, International IDEA
Mats Karlsson, Director, UI
Panel discussion:
Sergio Bitar, Member of International IDEA Board of Advisers, and former Minister of Public Works, Education and Mining in Chile
Iina Soiri, Director of the Nordic Africa Institute at Uppsala University
Cheick Modibo Diarra, Member of International IDEA Board of Advisers
Keboitse Machangana, Director of Global Programmes at International IDEA moderated the discussions