Leader : "SD's family of parties dismantles democracy"

 

Leader

Professor Staffan I Lindberg warns against the tyranny of small steps

Anders Lindberg

Political Editor-in-Chief

Aftonbladet's editorial page is independent social democratic.

Published 21.15

Staffan I Lindberg, professor of political science and director of V-dem, one of the world's leading research institutes on democratization processes Photo: Johan Wingborg

LILLEHAMMER There are few such beautiful cities in the Nordics. The Gudbrandsdalen winds like a fairytale land lined by mighty mountains. Lakes, stave churches and at the top a jumping hill.

All bathed in sunshine and greenery.

The World Expression Forum, WEXFO, gathered this week profiles in media, human rights, research and civil society to talk about freedom of expression. The participants came from all over the world.

Lillehammer is best known for the 1994 Olympics. But it also has a long history of art, culture and freedom of expression.

- We are a city of storytellers, said the mayor Hans Olav Sär en stad av storytellers, sa borgmästaren Hans Olav Sundfør, when the conference began.

Two of three Norwegian Nobel laureates in literature, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson and Sigrid Undset, lived here. And almost everywhere you are reminded of the legend behind the Birkebeinerrennet ski race.

It is a kind of Norwegian Vasalopp of 54 kilometers in memory of how two rebels in 1206 saved the little Norwegian prince Håkon Håkonsson through a life-threatening ski trip across the vast expanses. Civil war raged.

In honor of the prince, all participants in the competition must carry a backpack of at least 3.5 kg.

Over 800 years later.

Storytelling, as I said.

But it was a different kind of story we heard from the stage at the World Expression Forum. Most things - about freedom of expression and democracy - go straight to the woods.

- 30 years ago, a handful of countries in the world were on the verge of democratization, today there are 42, says Staffan I Lindberg, professor of Political Science at the University of Gothenburg and director of the institute Varieties of democracy, V-dem.

He was one of WEXFO's more important speakers. V-dem is today one of the world's most respected institutes for democracy research.

- Never before in history have so many countries been dedemocratized at the same time. They comprise as much as 35 percent, more than a third, of the world's population, he says.

There are positive examples where more authoritarian regimes are developing in a positive direction, such as Poland and Brazil. But they are among the exceptions.

According to Staffan Lindberg, it is roughly the same kind of parties and political movements that are behind the development everywhere. From Putin to Erdogan, Orbán to Modi in India, from Donald Trump to similar groups in the EU and Latin America.

- I would say that the Sweden Democrats belong to the family of parties in Europe and beyond that democratized countries when they came to power. Those are the facts, says Staffan I Lindberg.

It is about populists on the right with authoritarian reflexes and limited respect for liberal democracy and power sharing. Their increasing influence means that countries that used to be decently functioning democracies with a free press, active civil society and independent courts are becoming increasingly authoritarian, less and less free.

What does it look like in practice, what is the first thing these forces attack?
 

- The media, Staffan I Lindberg answers quickly.

- Media are attacked by the state power and their followers. First, individual journalists and marginal media. Then more and more. Disinformation is used strategically to increase polarization.

The next step is civil society. Anyone who wants to change in an authoritarian direction does not want demonstrations and protests in the streets. Then they try to take control of academia and culture.

- All wannabe dictators surrender to the independent power centers that exist, says Staffan I Lindberg.

In many countries it is quite simple. Swedish professors are, for example, civil servants. The culture is directly dependent on public support.

 

What does it look like in a country like Sweden?

- We can actually see that some of our indicators have results for Sweden as well. Not that it is noticeable as a whole, yet. But, for example, "political parties' use of hateful rhetoric", what is called "hate speech", has increased. "The political elite's degree of respect for each other's arguments" has decreased, says Staffan Lindberg.

But those are last year's numbers. The development has continued to go in the wrong direction, polarization and the amount of misinformation is increasing.

- There are norms that are being shifted in Sweden that are reminiscent of countries that are being dedemocratized, he says.

An example was during the NATO process when critics of NATO membership hung a doll of Turkish President Erdogan. It was a constitutionally protected part of freedom of expression, but Ulf Kristersson called the doll "sabotage" against the NATO process and "disgusting".

- Dedemocratization happens in a thousand small steps, so the borders are moved, says Staffan I Lindberg.

Another example is Jimmie Åkesson's reaction to TV4's recent review, which he called "an influence operation". Like media scrutiny is illegitimate. TV4 has since had to expand its security.

A third is the debate about party lotteries.

- You can, of course, discuss rules around party funding. But the remarkable thing here is that the government and its supporting party are tapping into the main opposition party's biggest source of income, apart from party support. And also openly says that the very purpose is to reduce the income precisely for them. It is of course undemocratic, he says.

Staffan Lindberg sees the development before the EU elections on June 9 as "extremely worrying". The two party groups that contain or are close to parties that have already democratized countries in the EU are making strong progress.

What can be done then to reverse the twist?

Staffan I Lindberg shakes his head.

- Based on our data, I am deeply concerned, both for democracy in the world and in the long term in Europe. But there are common features when things have gone well, as in Poland and Brazil. The first is that disinformation has been actively combated. "Democracy dies with lies" they usually say. The second is that the opposition has come together and not allowed itself to be divided. The third is that civil society does not back down.

The secret is to never give up. A bit like skiing.

 

The lille prince Håkon Håkonsson survived the flight over the mountain against all odds. Han grew up and ruled Norway for a full 46 years.

In some years, the Birkebeinerrennen has had to be canceled due to war, pandemic or blizzard. But it always restarts.