Democracy should adjust itself to the new realities and the pandemic showed that earlier they thought that the decisive role in the globalization context is played by the liberal economy, but now it was proven that the state regained its positions of instrument that regulates, to a particular extent. In the Republic of Moldova, it was a situation that derived from post-totalitarianism, post-authoritarianism as the citizens existed for the state, not the state existed for the citizens. This is one of the main causes why the Republic of Moldova is at the end of the list of the democratic European states, Victor Juc, director of the Institute of Legal, Political and Sociological Research, stated in IPN’s public debate “Dangers to democracy in the contemporary world: impact on the Republic of Moldova”.
“The world is interdependent owing to globalization. Globalization has an effect on at least five-six sectors, with the last introduced ones being the political and geopolitical sectors. When a particular phenomenon in a state occurs, this can have repercussions for other states too. The Republic of Moldova is in a process of transition. The Republic of Moldova is endeavoring to transpose good practices from the European Union. It is very good that electoral democracy principally works in the Republic of Moldova, with small exceptions. There were some problems, but the power was transferred by peaceful, democratic ways from those who held it to those who gained it in a more or less democratic competition,” stated Victor Juc.
According to the expert, the Republic of Moldova is at the interdependence of a number of civilizations and the situation in such conditions is more difficult. When a country is situated in the vicinity of a state with authoritarian tendencies, it is harder to build something at domestic level. The existing alternative – either the European Union or the Russian Federation – is not advantageous to the Republic Moldova is it is one situation to have an already formed system and it is another situation to have an unpredictable system. For example, Germany can swiftly occupy Luxemburg, but no one raises the question of the lack of perspective for Luxemburg. The military union between Switzerland and Liechtenstein can be mentioned in the same context.
The results at domestic level are rather for internal consumption and it is good that particular Euro-compliant results are achieved. “We should not forget that democracy can be de iure and de facto. You can have very good, Euro-compliant, standardized laws that are in accordance with the Association Agreement, but their implementation can be fully defective and we see this in the Republic of Moldova as particular practices are distorted and some of the European practices implemented here produce other results than in the EU member states.”
The public debate “Dangers to democracy in the contemporary world: impact on the Republic of Moldova” is the 205th installment of the series “Developing Political Culture through Public Debates. The project is implemented by IPN with the assistance of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
