As part of the UN’s global stocktaking of democracy, the Geneva Democracy Week aims to stimulate debate and critical discussion on ongoing transformations of sociopolitical systems and modes of engagement.
As a city and a canton of dialogue, Geneva has a particular responsibility for offering spaces where such reflections can take place, as highlighted in the opening event by Anne Hiltpold, Vice-President of the Cantonal Government.
The programme led by the Albert Hirschman Centre on Democracy involved leading voices from local, national and international organisations, along with activists, practitioners, and renowned thinkers. It also provided opportunities to observe how democratic institutions work in practice, in Geneva and Switzerland, and to imagine participatory methods for a just transition driven by youth.
Gen Z has been shaping alternative forms of political expression across the world. These alternative approaches need to be recognised — as was highlighted by Delphine Bachmann, Geneva State Councillor — even more actively so given the profound challenges currently facing democracies. Such movements actively pursue horizontality, both within their organisations and for the broader realm of democratic governance.
But exploring democratic practices across contexts inevitably reveals asymmetries, both in who gets to participate and whose voice are heard and produce influence. While these disparities challenge democratic ideals, they are reinforced by deeper systemic forces that erode “our institutions, our practices and our democratic spirit”, as highlighted by George Papandreou in his keynote. Prime Minister of Greece from 2009 to 2011, Member of the Hellenic Parliament and General Rapporteur on Democracy at the Council of Europe, George Papandreou offered a compelling analysis of the significance of polarisation in contemporary polities. He pointed out that “democracy is not merely a set of rules: it is an ethos, of debate, respect and fairness in practice, not just in theory. But this spirit will be influenced if this power is concentrated.”
The complex and intricate nexus between democracy and economy was the topic of a dedicated roundtable hosted by Maison Rousseau et Litérature with the participation of Marie-Laure Salles, who pointed out that inequality lies at the heart of the tension between political liberalism and economic liberalism — as already identified by Rousseau. Hence her call to act on the mechanisms of imbalance, through regulation and political action, but also by recreating exploratory spaces of democratic debate, including among economic actors.
“Without justice there will be polarisation”, noted George Papandreou. Social justice is at the heart of the engagement of a wide constellation of grassroots efforts to defend and advance rights. The continued importance of international human rights frameworks in these efforts emerged from the group discussions with Irene Khan, UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, and independent expert Miloon Kothari.
While democratic models are being challenged to adapt and reinvent themselves, exploring what informs the ongoing transformations of democracy is key to addressing these shifts across the many spaces in which they are unfolding.
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Image featuring the keynote lecture by George Papandreou, Prime Minister of Greece from 2009 to 2011, Member of the Hellenic Parliament and General Rapporteur on Democracy at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.