Sakharov Prize - image: European parliament (cc: by-nc-nd)
Western observers have sympathised with the demonstrators and the rebels in North Africa who have expelled their dictators. They have taken great risks to gain their new liberty. They deserved even more sympathy when their action in the streets was prolonged to participate in free elections. Thus, so inferred our observers, they took a major step toward establishing a true democracy: a good thing for them and a good thing for us, since democratic authorities tend to have peaceful relationships with foreign countries. However we are gradually learning more. It was indeed a first step, but only a first step. A stable democracy is not achieved by means of a single, more-or-less successful electoral process. Continue reading
