Why in news?

• US President Biden co-hosted the second Summit for Democracy with the governments of Costa Rica, the Netherlands, Korea, and Zambia.
• India was also an invitee to the summit. PM Modi virtually addressed the Summit.

What’s in today’s article?

• Summit for Democracy
• News Summary

Summit for Democracy

Background

• On December 9-10, 2021, US President Biden hosted the first Summit for Democracy.
• This summit brought together leaders all over the world to set forth an affirmative agenda for democratic renewal and to tackle the greatest threats faced by democracies today through collective action.

Aim

• The summit aims to show how open, rights-respecting societies can work together to effectively tackle the challenges of our time such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, and inequality.

Principal themes

• The Summit is centered around three principal themes:
  • Defending against authoritarianism
  • Addressing and fighting corruption
  • Advancing respect for human rights

Criticism of this summit

• Questions over some invitees' democratic credentials
  • The first summit extended invitation to those countries whose leaders are accused by human rights groups of harboring authoritarian tendencies.
    • Eg., The Philippines, Poland and Brazil.
• Invitation of Taiwan angered China
• The first summit included Taiwan, stoking anger from China, which considers the democratically governed island part of its territory.
• W- eaponsing democracy
  • Russia and China accused Washington if “w- eaponsing democracy”.
    • They accused the Biden administration of exhibiting a Cold-War mentality.
    • This will stoke up ideological confrontation and a rift in the world.
  • They said that US is lecturing the world when its own democracy, particularly the conduct of elections at home, is ragged and inconsistent.
• Summit was ill-advised
  • Many analysts believe that the summit was ill-advised as:
    • US needs non-democracies to work with on regional & global challenges;
    • invite list filled with inconsistencies;
    • US is not in a position to preach or provide model.

News Summary: Second Summit for Democracy

• The second Summit for Democracy was co-hosted by the U.S., Costa Rica, the Netherlands, South Korea and Zambia.
• 121 leaders across the world were invited to the three-day Summit.
  • India, Nepal and Maldives were invited while Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka did not get the invitation.
  • Pakistan, which was invited, declined to attend for the second time, ostensibly due to the exclusion of China.
• The text for Summit for Democracy Declaration was finalised and is left open to be endorsed by the participating leaders.

Summit for Democracy Declaration

• The Declaration affirms the endorsing parties’ political commitments to:
  • Protect human rights, media freedom, and rule of law;
  • Ensure accountability for human rights violations and abuses;
  • Support people, including in Ukraine, who stand for freedom and reject aggression;
  • Combat all forms of discrimination and exclusion, including by strengthening women’s rights;
  • Prevent and combat corruption;
  • Advance technology that works for, and not against democracy;
  • Defend against transnational threats, including foreign malign influence and foreign information manipulation;
  • Support free and fair elections; and
  • Address global challenges, including sustainable development, climate change, global health, and food security.

Key highlights of the speech delivered by PM Modi at the Second Summit for Democracy

• India - mother of democracy
  • Asserting that India is indeed the mother of democracy, PM Modi said that democracy refers not just to a structure but also the spirit of equality.
  • He said that the Mahabharata, the Vedas and all historical references prove that non-hereditary rulers first existed in India.
• Democracy Can Deliver
  • India, despite the many global challenges, is the fastest growing major economy today.
  • This itself is the best advertisement for democracy in the world. This itself says that Democracy Can Deliver.
• India’s commitment on climate change
  • Initiatives such as fighting the climate crisis through lifestyle changes, conserving water through distributed storage and providing clean cooking fuel to everyone are powered by the collective efforts of Indian citizens.
• India’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic
  • India’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic was people-driven and they made it possible to administer more than two billion doses of indigenously made vaccines.
  • ‘Vaccine Maitri’ initiative shared millions of vaccines with the world.
  • This was also guided by the democratic spirit of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ — One Earth, One Family, One Future.