“Democracy remains the best regime, which is good news, but politicians should be better.The message is clear and was spoken by Ayesha Hazarika, a political commentator, at the end of the debate ‘How to prevent the destruction of democracy?’ from 1974. The meeting, which brought together North American academics Daniel Ziblatt and Sheri Berman, was the final point of the conference “Five Decades of Democracy, What Future?”, hosted by the Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation (FFMS), on April 25 .
The speakers focused on a global perspective on the state of democracy and analyzed the evolution and state of democratic regimes. Despite the threats, such as populism and disinformation, there is a sense of optimism. Why? “Democracies can correct themselves,” said Sheri Berman, a professor at Columbia University, picking up on something previously discussed by Daniel Ziblatt. And illustrates: “We had terrorist attacks in Europe not so long ago, massive shootings and massive protests in the United States, and yet democracies managed to recalibrate themselves. And that ability will exist if we don’t allow the regime to be demoted. Even leaders like Viktor Órban [presidente húngaro] or Erdoğan [presidente turco] cannot change drastically.” Daniel Ziblatt, a professor at Harvard University, believes that “Democracy is ultimately competition. It’s about the freedom to choose, and it’s good when that happens,” he said.
Previously, the packed audience – with some faces like Aníbal Cavaco Silva, former president of the republic, or Luís Marques Mendes, former PSD leader and former minister – attended the presentation of the book The essence of Portuguese politics, recently edited by Tinta da China in collaboration with FFMS. In the presentation, Pedro Magalhães, one of the three coordinators of the work, emphasized the important role this compendium plays in the Portuguese academic panorama. In total there are eight volumes, almost a thousand pages (“It is essential, I think this shows the interest in the theme and the complexity,” he said. And more than a cross-cutting message, what the book allows is, as the academic assumes, a general portrait of Portugal.”It is a plural book. It consists of 48 chapters”, ranging from historical analysis to the Portuguese political system, through social movements and public policy, ending with a focus on National Defense. In addition to Pedro Magalhães, researchers António Costa Pinto and Jorge Fernandes also coordinated the work, which consists of scientific articles by other academics.
Source: DN
