Manifest
Democracy Under Threat – a call to action
Democracy is under threat worldwide! Not only as a consequence of actions of anti-democratic and autocratic regimes, but also due to the rise of anti-democratic populist movements and parties in democratic states. Creating and defending democratic structures is primarily a task for government actors as law-makers and the ones responsible for their enforcement, but since many of them are not adequately committed to or up to that task, civil society organizations, companies and other actors in society must also step in, addressing problems and challenges in established democracies, countries in transition and autocracies.
- Develop, in a joint commitment between government and civil society organizations, an integrated long-term strategy for democracy support and promotion
- Establish a new position at Dutch government level and at EU-level for a Special Envoy for Democracy
- Make democracy central in foreign policy, climate agenda, peacebuilding, development aid and reconstruction, not subordinated to economic or (geo)political interests
- Defend and apply the EU Rule of Law Conditionality Mechanism
- Create better, more direct democratic models of governing, such as citizens panels, assemblies and initiatives following the “nothing about us without us” principle
- Design a national anti-corruption program, correcting (Dutch) laws facilitating international corruption
- Support more critical voices in autocracies and dissidents in diaspora
- Empower the next generation of active citizens through civic education, and empower the next generation politicians and civic activists through training, specifically underrepresented groups
- Shift more resources to pro-democracy actors at local and subnational levels
- Support sanctions but no total isolation of ordinary citizens – no new Cold War
- Put democracy, rule of law and human rights at the top of EU and CoE policy
- Include displaced communities and exiled professionals in a citizen-centered, bottom-up and inclusive reconstruction of Ukraine
- Increase the MATRA-NFRP grants for democracy in the European neighborhood
- Set up an independent Dutch fund for democracy, human rights, rule of law and anti-corruption.
- Include the interests of future generations in all their diversity in decision-making processes
- Fight technological threats to democracy and security, and use technologies that innovate, defend and strengthen democracy.
