I was invited to join a panel discussion on democracy at the third Global Greens congress in Dakar, Senegal. Here’s what I said. I’ve added links to some interesting online resources:
I was asked to talk about e-democracy, so I’ll try to give you a quick overview of what I think are the challenges and opportunities presented to us as Global Greens.
We have entered the Digital Age. Today, we’re nearing 1 billion Facebook users. Every day 300 million tweets are posted on Twitter. This is not just a Western phenomenon. Here in Dakar, almost every Senegalese I’ve met, has a Facebook account, uses Gmail and is an avid Skype user. In some countries, there are more mobile phones than toilets. This is not to dismiss the importance of basic sanitary amenities, but just to illustrate the value modern means of communication hold to many people around the world.
To me, the core of an e-democracy are the ideals of freedom, knowledge sharing and participatory democracy. As Greens, we have a strong tradition in grassroots participation of members in party decision making. The challenge comes from incorporating new digital technologies into our own party institutional procedures and within a whole range of democratic institutions at large.
To give you one example, from my own party, Groen in Belgium. Several times it has been proposed to allow people to vote by proxy during party congresses. It was rejected several times over. Apparently, a majority of members who attend congresses still feel it’s crucial to be physically present. Do you agree?
Digital tools allow millions of people to communicate and collaborate with each other on a daily basis. They can and are being used effectively to raise awareness about many global and local issues. Are we utilizing their full potential within our own parties at the moment? I don’t think so.
We’re currently live streaming this congress to people all over the world. Hundreds have tuned in to follow the debates. But apart from the live stream and many participant Facebook and Twitter updates, how can Greens from dozens of different countries truly participate in this process? It will be challenging to find our way in the digital future.
The possibilities and opportunities of an open and free Internet are endless. Today, many people around the world have Internet access, but are strictly monitored and censored in their digital lives. Using technology provided by major Western companies, enemies of democracy are limiting access to the world wide web. I personally hope, Green parties in Western countries make it one of their top priorities to stop companies from providing censoring technology. The fight for an open and free Internet for all, will be one of the major challenges for the next decade.
Last year, when Internet users in 12 authoritarian states tried to navigate to the social networking sites we take for granted in Western states, they encountered the usual government firewall blocking access. But there was a twist. Many of them also saw an ad alerting them to the fact they could download free tools to circumvent this censorship. Almost half a million users did. This wasn’t the work of the social media companies themselves. It was funded by the US Department of State. One other prominent example is their so-called “Internet in a suitcase”. It’s literally a suitcase-sized solution to allow activists around the world to continue communicating, even when the government tries to shutdown the Internet.
It is possible to take many innovative approaches towards advancing Internet freedom, one of the key requirements for the creation of an online public sphere. I hope many Green policy makers and members of parliament will support these approaches.
I’d like to end this short Intervention on a positive note. Yesterday, over 36.000 Palestinians became Facebook friends with an Israeli. 225.000 Indians added a Pakistani to their circle of friends. When asked online whether they think we will achieve world peace within 50 years, over 60% of people in Thailand answer Yes.
The Internet can be a force for global good. It can tair down borders, spread knowledge, and allow people to participate in ways thought unimaginable just a few years ago. It allows people from diverse backgrounds to easily connect and share, which I believe can increase mutual understanding and decrease conflict. But, to quote Alec Ross – the US State Departments’ senior innovation advisor, you can’t just sprinkle the Internet over democracy and society, and make people engaged. It will take innovative thinking, commitment and lots of hard political work to achieve a true inclusive e-democracy. Thank you.
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