At NYU’s Democracy Project, Professor Wojciech Sadurski, Challis Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of Sydney and Professor at the University of Warsaw Center for Europe, has an important essay on the struggle of how democrats should respond, once back in power, to the institutional remnants of authoritarian regimes. An issue worth reflecting on.
Some excerpts:
What happens when authoritarian populists lose to their democratic opponents in democratic elections? A process of restoration of democracy and the rule of law, following the best international practices, will take place, you might say.
Much easier said than done. Especially when the populists have deeply undermined the fundamental institutions of democracy, such as legislative processes, the separation of powers, the system of justice, and public prosecution. The process of reform is arduous and lengthy; rather than a broad highway with clear signposts, it is a narrow, bumpy country road, with no signs indicating the destination, and plenty of potholes along the way. Or to change the metaphor, a minefield left by the former incumbents to their democratic successors. Or, to change the metaphor once again, a Sisyphean democracy….
The answer seems to be obvious – however, it is anything but. If the rule of law is understood as faithful, strict compliance by the authorities with the language of all the statutes in force, then the call for compliance with the rule of law equals a recipe for paralysis. It is how a Sisyphean democracy was supposed to work, as envisioned by the populist predecessors. On the other hand, disregarding the legal provisions in force subjects the democratic government to the predictable accusation, both by local rule-of-law NGOs and the international community (in Europe, the Venice Commission in particular), that their successors are simply replicating the infamous practices of the populists, except this time against them.
Poland is currently grappling with this issue. The essay concludes:
How Polish democrats will handle the dilemma just outlined, against all odds, is likely to carry important lessons for democratic forces engaged (today and in the future) in post-populist transitions elsewhere in the world.