How Democracy Is Falling Apart

Hadam Che | November 14, 2022

Authoritarian leaders. Protests. Insurrections. Political violence. National states in turmoil. These are all too familiar to us now. 2022 has been a tumultuous year for many democracies. Here's a look at a few of the hot spots.

In September, we watched the re-election of Benjamin "BiBi' Netanyahu, the former prime minister of Israel. He held the office from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021—making him the longest-serving prime minister in the nation's history. Upon being ousted in 2021 due to corruption charges, he began to bending to the demands of far-right parties to receive their backing. With the pressure of Israel's conservative and Orthodox Jewish communities, representation of the entire Israel population and the prospect of independent Palestinian state seems unlikely (NYT). Viktor Orban, Hungary's Prime Minister since 2010, was re-elected in November of 2022, further solidifying his power. head of the far-right nationalist party Fidesz, Orban holds control over most of the country's government institutions. This portends a dark future for hungary's democracy, with the ruling party restricting media freedom and amending the Constitution, seeking to establish complete autocratic rule.

In Peru, political turmoil is rampant. On December 7, 202, a congressional meeting was scheduled to impeach President Pedro Castillo following his corruption allegations. In response, he announced the disbandment of the Congress in an attempt to nullify the voting. The President's disregard for democracy shocked vene his allies, and government officials resigned in protest By the end of the day, Castillo was out of the office and arrested, putting Vice President Dina Boluarte in charge (NYT). The situation remains fragile.

In January, rioters in Brazil stormed and ransacked parts of the congress, the Supreme Court, and the Presidential Palace. The rampage was led by hardline supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro after he was defeated y Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Lula) in the runoff elections. Far-right extremists were incited by both anti-democratic theories. President Lula remains in control of the country and since the attack about 2.000 rioters have been arrested (CNN). The New York Times noted that this attack. bored an "unsettling resemblance" to the deadly January 20211 insurrection in the U.S. capitol.

Yet, when cracks begin to emerge, citizens and leaders continue to fortify their democratic governments through new legislation and fair elections in hopes to ensure equality.