Struggles for

Democracy Ch 35

1945-Present

1

• Democracy • Government by the people

• Direct democracy (when all

citizens meet to pass laws)

isn’t practical for nations

• Indirect democracy or republic

(when citizens elect

representatives to pass laws

for them)

• Always a “work in progress”

• Ex. Equality is promised in the

US Constitution, but slavery

was legal until 1865 + women

couldn’t vote until 1920

2

Making Democracy Work Common

Practices

Conditions That Foster

Those Practices

Free Elections -Having more than one political party

-Universal suffrage

Citizen Participation -High levels of education + literacy

-Economic security

-Freedoms of speech, press, + assembly

Majority Rule,

Minority Rights

-All citizens equal before the law

-Shared national identity

-Protection of individual rights

-Representatives elected by citizens

Constitutional Gov.’t -Clear body of traditions + laws

-Widespread education of political science

-National acceptance of majority decisions

-Shared belief that no one is above the law 3

• Latin America • UN study reports that the spread

of democracy could be derailed if

free elections in poor countries

aren’t followed by economic

• Warned especially about Latin

America

• Many countries won their indep.

from Spain + Portugal in the

1800s, but were left w/ many

problems. Including:

1. Powerful militaries

2. Economies that were too

dependent on a single crop

3. Large gaps b/w the rich +

poor 4

• Brazil • Gains indep. from Portugal in 1822

– Monarchy Republic Dictator

Republic Military Dictatorship

Republic

–Problems faced include:

1. Gov.’t controlled by wealthy

elite

2. Foreign debt + inflation

3. in standard of living (level

of material comfort)

4. Recession (a slowdown in the

economy)

5

• Mexico

Vicente Fox

1st president elected

belonging to a different

political party in 2000

• Enjoyed stability for most of the 20th

century

• Had elections, but ruled by the same

party for over 70 yrs.

• Has its weaknesses, but overall a

relatively stable democracy

6

• Argentina • Republic Dictator Military

Dictatorship Republic

Military Dictatorship Republic

• Problems faced include:

1. Thousands died or disappeared

under the military dictatorship

2. 2003, Argentina defaulted on

$132 bil debt – largest default in

history

3. Weak economy

End Section 1

7

• Africa • Beginning in late 1950s, dozens of African colonies gained their indep.

• Main reason for difficulties was the negative impact of colonial rule:

1. Artificial boundaries of nations created by Europeans

2. Lack of experience running a gov.’t

3. Exploitation of African resources + people (cash crops + cheap labor)

4. Lack of industrialization 8

Africa • Algeria (1965-1978)

• Burkina Faso (1966-1991)

• Burundi (1966-1993)

• Central African Republic (1966-1976; 1981-1986; 2003-2005)

• Chad (1975-1979)

• Republic of the Congo (1968-1979)

• Egypt (1952-1956)

• Equatorial Guinea (1979-1982)

• Ethiopia (1974-1987)

• The Gambia (1994-1996)

• Ghana (1966-1970; 1972-1979; 1981-1993)

• Guinea (1984-1993)

• Liberia (1980-1986)

• Libya (1969-present)

• Madagascar (1972-1975)

• Mauritania (1978-1992; 2005-2007; 2008-present)

• Niger (1974-1991; 1996-1999)

• Nigeria (1966-1979; 1983-1999)

• Rwanda (1973-1994)

• Sierra Leone (1967-1968; 1992-1996; 1997-1998)

• Somalia (1969-1991; then local militia rule)

• Sudan (1958-1964; 1969-1972; 1989-1993)

• Uganda (1971-1979; 1985-1986)

• When Europeans gave up their colonies they left fragile democracies in place, many of which would be overthrown (especially by military dictators)

• Some would declare martial law (temporary military rule) +/or jail dissidents (gov.’t opponents)

9

• South Africa

• When the colonists arrived, they immediately began segregating races

• Once colonialism ended, a white minority ruled over the black majority. They called their policy of separating the races apartheid (“separate-ness”).

• Under this system, blacks made up 75% of the population, but were forced to live on 13% of the land – called homelands (areas set aside for blacks + other minorities) which were divided by tribes to further divide blacks 10

• Fighting Apartheid

• In 1912, blacks formed the African National Congress (ANC) to fight for their rights.

• It would use violent means to end apartheid

• It organized strikes + boycotts and would be banned by the gov.’t + its leaders imprisoned, including Nelson Mandela.

• Bishop Desmond Tutu called for foreign nations to avoid doing business w/ South Africa which led to many nations imposing trade restrictions on South Africa. It was also banned from the Olympics

• In 1990, the ANC was made legal + Mandela was released. This led to the overturning of apartheid laws.

• South Africa’s 1st universal elections were held in 1994 w/ Nelson Mandela being elected president

End Section 2

11

• The Beginning of the End of the USSR

• During the 1960-70s, the Politburo (the ruling committee of the Communist Party) crushed all political disagreement + practiced strict censorship

• 1982, Mikhail Gorbachev was chosen as the party’s new general secretary (most powerful man in the USSR)

• Gorbachev believed in communism, but thought it only needed to be reformed

• Gorbachev knew that economic + social reforms couldn’t occur w/o a flow of ideas, so he instituted a policy of glasnost (openness) which led to the opening of churches, the release of dissidents from prison, + allowed previously banned authors to have their books printed

12

• More of Gorbachev’s Reforms

• B/c of glasnost, more people begin to complain about the gov.’t (long bread lines, lack of consumer goods, etc)

• Gorbachev blamed many of the country’s problems on poor central planning

• Begins a policy known as perestroika (economic restructuring) which allowed more decisions on things such as prices + wages to be made at a local level

• Begins a policy known as democratization to open up Soviet politics + allow candidates other than those chosen by the Communist party to run for office

• Realizes USSR can’t compete w/ US in the arms race + begins to cut back arms production 13

• Soviet States Begin to Break Away

• B/c of glasnost, states w/in the USSR begin calling for their indep. W/ over 100 ethnic groups, there was a history of ethnic tensions. Russians were by far the largest group, but only in the state of Russia

• Lithuania was the 1st to declare its indep. in March 1990, Gorbachev called for economic sanctions, but fearing a domino effect, sends in troops. Soviet troops attack civilians. 14 die + hundreds wounded

14

• of Yeltsin • Boris Yeltsin became Russia’s

(NOT the Soviet) 1st directly elected

president. He criticized

Gorbachev’s crackdown in

Lithuania + the slow pace of

reforms

• Soviet conservatives were unhappy

w/ changes + detained Gorbachev

at his house + sent troops w/ tanks

into Moscow in the August Coup.

Yeltsin denounced the action from

the top of one of the tanks. When

ordered by the conservatives to

attack, the troops refused, +

Gorbachev was released.

15

• End of

the USSR

• After the August Coup, Estonia + Latvia

quickly declare their indep.

• All of the remaining republics quickly

followed

• Most of them formed the CIS

(Commonwealth of Independent States).

• Gorbachev resigned + Yeltsin is now the

most powerful man in Russia + the CIS.

16

• Yeltsin

Faces

Challenges

• He enacted “shock therapy” – a policy

designed to abruptly shift from a

communist to a free-market economy

• At first, prices soared, factories

shut down, many people were out

of work

• In SW Russia, the predominately

Muslim area of Chechnya declared its

indep. Yeltsin refused to allow it to

secede. An off-again, on-again war

was fought. In 2002, a group of

Chechen terrorists seized a theater in

Moscow. Over 150 people died in the

rescue attempt. Fighting still breaks

out today. 17

• Vladimir Putin • Became president after Yeltsin

resigned in 1999.

• He grew in popularity after forcefully

dealing w/ the rebellion in Chechnya,

but has been criticized abroad for

some undemocratic policies.

• He claims that he supports a free-

market economy, but that it must be

adapted to Russia’s unique

circumstances.

• After two terms as president he

served as Prime Minister and then

president again.

End Section 3

18

• The End of

Communism

in Europe

• Due to the reforms of Mikhail

Gorbachev during the 1980s, all of the

USSR’s satellite countries would break

away + try to form democratic gov.’ts

• Many of these countries continue to

face economic hardships + some have

ongoing ethnic conflicts

19

• Poland • 1980, Polish shipyard workers had formed

the Solidarity union. They demanded the Polish gov.’t officially recognize their union. Gained the support of millions of Poles.

• When the gov.’t did so, the union leader, Lech Walesa became a national hero.

• 1981, the gov.’t banned Solidarity again + declared martial law. The economy plummeted.

• 1988 workers walked off their jobs + one year later the gov.’t recognized Solidarity + agreed to hold free elections. Lech Walesa was voted as the 1st Polish president. He would later be voted out of office b/c the Poles thought economic progress was moving too slowly 20

• Hungary • Radicals w/in the Communist party

launched democratic reforms

• They later deposed of the Communist

leaders + dissolved the party itself in

1989.

• Had free elections afterwards

21

• Germany Reunifies • 1989, Austria allowed vacationing

East Germans to cross the border

w/ Austria. From Austria they

could travel to West Germany.

• E. Germany closed its

borders entirely

• Protests broke out all around E.

Germany

• The gov.’t gambles that

communism could be saved by

allowing E. Germans to travel

freely. The Berlin Wall is torn

down. Leads to the end of the

Communist party in Germany

• Led to the reunification (merging)

of the 2 Germanys in Oct. 1990

22

• Czechoslovakia • People gathered in Prague (the

capital) demanded democracy

• Gov.’t cracked down on

dissidents brutally, including a

student led protest

• Outraged, ½ mil gathered

in Prague to protest

• Gov.’t resigned in Nov. 1989

• 1993, due to ethnic differences

+ differing opinions on

economic policies,

Czechoslovakia would split into

the Czech Republic + Slovakia

peacefully in the Velvet

Revolution 23

• Romania • Led by ruthless dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.

• In 1989, a protest began in Timisoara. The army was sent in + hundreds were wounded + killed.

• Led to uprisings throughout the country.

• Ceausescu + his wife attempted to flee but were captured + executed on Christmas, 1989.

• Romania has since struggled heavily w/ corruption + crime.

• In 2007, it joined the European Union 24

• Yugoslavia

Josip Tito

• Formed after WWI – divided into 6

republics

• Plagued by ethnic conflict – had 8

major ethnic groups

• Led by Josip Tito from 1945-1980.

• Slobodan Milosevic took over after

Tito’s death

• 1991, 2 republics (Slovenia + Croatia)

declared their indep. Milosevic sent in

the army to invade them, but the

invasion failed after months of fighting

25

• Bosnia then declared its indep.

• Made up of 44% Muslim, 31% Serbs, + 17% Croats

• Bosnian Serbs didn’t want to break away + launched a war in March 1992, supported by Serbia

• During the war Serbian forces used violence + forced migrating of Muslims in Serb-controlled lands in a policy of ethnic-cleansing to rid Bosnia of its Muslims

• In 1995, the UN brokered a peace treaty which called for a 3-person presidency (1 from each group) 26

• In Kosovo, the southern part of

Serbia made up almost entirely of

ethnic Albanians, an increasingly

violent indep. movement broke out

• This led to a UN bombing

campaign against Serbia due

to reports of atrocities being

committed

• It declared its indep. in 2008

• Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic

was captured + tried for crimes

against humanity, but died before a

verdict was reached

End Section 4

27

• Communist China • China had suffered

greatly under the

policies of Mao Zedong

(Chart p. 1059)

• After his death, people

turned away from

radical communism

• Movement for reform.

• Gov.’t supported

some economic

reform, but

crushed attempts

at political reform

28

• China’s

Foreign

Relations

• Split w/ the USSR in the 1960s over

issue of world leadership of

communism

• Hostile w/ US over US support of

Taiwan’s gov.’t

• After Mao’s death, China’s gov.’t

worries over China’s isolation +

makes friendly overtures towards

the US.

• During the 1970s, relations w/ the

US improve (B/c of Détente, US

acknowledges China’s gov.’t as the

legitimate gov.’t of China instead of

Taiwan’s, etc)

29

• China Under

Deng Xiaoping

• 1976, Deng Xiaoping came into power.

He was willing to use some capitalist

ideas to improve China’s economy

• Had 4 goals for progress known as the

4 Modernizations which called for

improvements in:

1. Agriculture (allowed crops to be

sold for a profit)

2. Industry (permitted more private

businesses)

3. Defense

4. Science + Technology (welcomed

foreign technology + investment)

• Deng’s economic policies improved the

standard of living but widened the gap

b/w the rich + the poor 30

• Tiananmen Square • Chinese public believed that the party officials were profiting from their positions. Also, they were increasingly exposed to Western ideas, particularly democracy.

• April 15, 1989, over 100,000 students began an uprising in Tiananmen Square calling for more democracy.

• Some went on a hunger strike + the movement gained widespread support

• Deng declare martial law + many protesters left, but some remained + erected a statue known as the “Goddess of Democracy”

• On June 4, 1989, thousands of armed soldiers stormed Tiananmen Square w/ tanks firing upon protesters + destroying the statue

• Killed hundreds + wounded thousands 31

• China’s One Child Policy

"For a prosperous, powerful nation and a happy family, please use birth planning." Government sign in area of Nanchang where pregnant

women hide.

Rural Sichuan roadside sign: "It is forbidden to discriminate against, mistreat or abandon baby girls."

• Introduced in the 1970s to make sure China could feed all its people

• People in cities are allowed only 1 child (unless the couple is an ethnic minority or both are only children)

• In rural areas, they’re permitted 2 children

• Enforced with financial penalties, + in the past, forced abortions + sterilizations

• Frequently not obeyed (a woman might go away + come back with a “relative’s” child or claim they adopted the child)

• In an area where males are traditionally valued over females, this has led to numerous abortions of female fetuses + to an unbalanced gender ratio

• China announced in March 2008 that it will continue the policy for at least another 10 yrs

32

• Issues Regarding China Today

1. Human Rights Violations – particularly against political prisoners

2. Taiwan – still indep. although it is considered a province of China

3. Tibet – many have been calling for its indep. for years

4. Hong Kong – Former British colony turned over to China in 1997. China promised to respect its political + economic liberties for 50 yrs

End Section 5

33