D

emocracy is often considered to be the best way to organize a country and achieve prosperity. Western countries always preach this to the developing world. India and Indonesia, as the world'€™s largest and third-largest democracies, are often cited as the paragons. In contrast, China is deemed to be moving down the wrong path because it abandoned democracy.

However, if we scrutinize further, Western countries implemented democracy in a gradual process. Most importantly, they became fully democratic only after they had developed their economies, governing institutions and educational systems.

A general election (boasting universal suffrage) is the be-all and end-all of true democracy. It is important to note that in their nascent democracies, Western states limited the people who were entitled to cast their ballots; the UK and the US are cases in point.

England was the country that inspired modern democracy. Following the signing of the Magna Charta in 1215, the first parliament was established in 1265 containing two chambers: the House of Lords comprising unelected aristocrats, and the House of Commons, which contained elected members of parliament (MPs). However, the only people allowed to vote were male landowners.

This situation lasted for centuries but by the 19th century, ordinary people began to demand inclusion. In 1819, for instance, amid desperate economic conditions, local people gathered to demonstrate in Manchester.

Fear by the British authorities of potentially revolutionary forces as seen across the Channel in France resulted in the government cracking down on the gathering.

However, this watershed event did trigger reform. In 1832, the Great Reform Act was enacted in order to accommodate the middle-class voice in politics. Still, the working class struggled for enfranchisement. Only after the end of World War I in 1918 was universal suffrage introduced in the UK, which at that time was the world'€™s superpower.

The United States went through a similar experience. In its early years, there was no universal suffrage in the US. Only white male landowners were allowed to vote. In 1856, the franchise was extended to include all white men. Ridiculously, native Indians were turned down for voting, because they legally didn'€™t include the citizen.

African-Americans were given the right to vote in 1870, although many were hampered by a poll tax and literacy test. Women were only given the right to vote in 1920.

The long journey to universal suffrage in most advanced countries reminds us of our so-called '€œAsian values'€. Lee Kuan Yew said successful democracy required '€œan interested and vigilant electorate'€ and '€œthe ablest, toughest and most dedicated of leaders'€.

Erwin Wirawan
Tangerang, Banten