#DeepDive | Democracy was once a promise of liberty, equality, and justice. But today, wars led by democratic nations and the rise of illiberal democracies raise troubling questions: Has democracy become a mask for majoritarianism, exclusion, and violence? From polarisation and attacks on free media to judiciary control and civil society repression, the very foundations of democracy are under siege.
As neoliberalism commodifies insecurity and normalises violence, is there a way back to democracy's transformative potential? Can Gandhi’s philosophy of non-violence and trust in uncertainty offer a path to redemption?
Read more in our latest issue 'War and Democracy'.
Reporter: Rani Jana
Camera: Suresh Kumar Pandey and Vikram Sharma
Editor: Ehraz Zaman
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#NeverEndingWars #ContinuousWars #EndlessWars #PerpetualWars #Outlook #WarAndPeace #Palestine #Ukraine #Syria #Sudan #Nigeria #Congo #Cameroon #Gaza #Yemen #Burma #SriLanka #Democracy #Wars #WarAndDemocracy #Polarisation #Neoliberalism #CivilLiberties #PressFreedom #HumanRights #Gandhi #Philosophy #Majoritarianism #GlobalPolitics #ConflictAndPeace
As neoliberalism commodifies insecurity and normalises violence, is there a way back to democracy's transformative potential? Can Gandhi’s philosophy of non-violence and trust in uncertainty offer a path to redemption?
Read more in our latest issue 'War and Democracy'.
Reporter: Rani Jana
Camera: Suresh Kumar Pandey and Vikram Sharma
Editor: Ehraz Zaman
Follow us:
Website: https://www.outlookindia.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Outlookindia
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outlookindia/
X: https://twitter.com/Outlookindia
Whatsapp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaNrF3v0AgWLA6OnJH0R
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@OutlookMagazine
Dailymotion: https://www.dailymotion.com/outlookindia
#NeverEndingWars #ContinuousWars #EndlessWars #PerpetualWars #Outlook #WarAndPeace #Palestine #Ukraine #Syria #Sudan #Nigeria #Congo #Cameroon #Gaza #Yemen #Burma #SriLanka #Democracy #Wars #WarAndDemocracy #Polarisation #Neoliberalism #CivilLiberties #PressFreedom #HumanRights #Gandhi #Philosophy #Majoritarianism #GlobalPolitics #ConflictAndPeace
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NewsTranscript
00:00John Adams once warned,
00:02Democracy never lasts long.
00:04It soon wastes, exhausts and murders itself.
00:07Today, his warning feels relevant
00:09as many wars are led by democratic nations.
00:13Leaders often act to please the majority.
00:16From the US's invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan
00:19to Russia's war on Ukraine,
00:21the veneer of democracy often masks the impulses of majoritarianism.
00:26Immanuel Kant called democracy a form of despotism,
00:30where majority rule suppresses minority voices,
00:34stating,
00:35The will of all is therefore not that of all,
00:38which is contradictory and opposite to liberty.
00:41This raises a troubling question.
00:44Is democracy turning into a system that fuels war and dominance
00:48instead of protecting liberty and justice?
00:51Welcome to Deep Dive with Outlook.
00:53Today, we will explore the complex relationship between democracy and wars.
00:58How did the promise of democracy transform into a paradox
01:02of uncertainty, violence and exclusion?
01:06Why are more and more democracies around the world,
01:09from North America to Latin America,
01:11from Europe to Asia and Africa,
01:14veering towards a rightward lurch?
01:16Why are more and more governments becoming inward-looking,
01:20suspicious of the other and led by demigods?
01:23Is this ultra-nationalism the root cause of the many wars
01:27and violent conflicts in the world?
01:29Democracy around the world has been shifting
01:32towards what some term an illiberal democracy.
01:36These comprise of
01:39which divides societies over issues like religion,
01:42migration or LGBTQIA plus rights,
01:45attacks on independent media,
01:48Judiciary control, where by appointing biased judges,
01:52government weakens the rule of law,
01:54repression of opposition, where law is enforced
01:57to ensure dissent is met with brutality,
02:00civil society scapegoating such as surveillance
02:03and legal restrictions that suppress freedoms
02:06under the guise of national security.
02:09In the late 20th century, neoliberalism promised progress
02:13but instead induced a paradox.
02:16By commodifying uncertainty,
02:18it shifted democracy's transformative potential
02:21into insecurity.
02:22How?
02:23Sites of profit-making expanded,
02:25leading to disenfranchisement and inequality.
02:28As described by Ashail Bembe,
02:31the shift from biopolitics to necropolitics
02:34saw states using mass violence as a control mechanism.
02:38In this neoliberal order, speed and scale replaced
02:41collective values, dehumanizing democracy.
02:45Paradoxically, neoliberalism's uncertainty
02:48birthed a hunger for absolute certainty.
02:51This manifested in immigration crackdowns
02:54to communal divides, concrete exclusions
02:57providing a deceptive sense of security.
03:00Violence has become a language of certainty,
03:03normalizing genocidal imageries in public discourse.
03:07Even democracy's hallmark of uncertainty,
03:10once its greatest strength, is now weaponized against it.
03:14Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy offers a counter-narrative.
03:18Though he opposed war,
03:20Gandhi believed in the moral preparation for death,
03:23exemplified in his own martyrdom.
03:26His violent death, paradoxically,
03:28cemented India's democratic foundation.
03:31Could embracing non-violence and trust in uncertainty
03:35restore democracy?
03:37You can read more about this in our issue, War and Democracy.