Why we need to listen to Global Voices of Freedom

In the latest direct democracy newsletter: how the re-opening after the pandemic doesn’t always mean the return of civil liberties, and how listening to testimonies of free expression from around the world can help.

The world is opening up again. In Denmark, the pandemic was virtually called off in early September. That same month, my country of residence, Sweden, lifted all Covid-related restrictions. When I travel to London this weekend to serve on an International Election Commission, I will no longer have to pre-book an expensive Day 2 PCR test. Next week the US is re-opening for vaccinated visitors; Thailand will do the same on November 1.

The end of health-related restrictions should also mean an end to limitations which have been placed on basic freedoms. But in many countries this is not happening, including in Thailand. There, the army-led government under Prime minister Prayut Chan-o-cha (the former general who organized a coup in 2014) has used the Covid-19 emergency to further weaken democracy, imprisoning hundreds of (mainly young) protesters in recent months.

This weekend however, the first big public protests since lockdown are scheduled to take place in the capital Bangkok. Thousands will address the anachronistic role of the monarchy in the country and request comprehensive constitutional changes, as the current basic laws were written and adopted under military rule. “We will now see how willing our authorities are to engage in a conversation with civil society,” says Pravit Rojanaphruk, one of Thailand’s most renowned voices on freedom and democracy.

Next week, we will interview him for the SWI swissinfo.ch series “Global Voices of Freedom”, a series which recently spoke to Gregório Duvivier, a Brazilian actor and comedian – and champion of freedom of expression – in Latin America’s biggest country.

“My duty is to push the boundaries. The worst problem, the biggest risk to the freedom of expression, is when you begin obeying in advance and self-censoring,” Duvivier told us.

The global series has brought together a diversity of voices from around the world, people like Gregório, Manami, Dmitry, Jessica, Ellie, and Nabil: entrepreneurs, journalists, elected politicians, and active citizens who have expressed their views on public issues, big and small, controversial and uncontroversial. What unites them is their daily commitment to expressing themselves freely and – importantly – to being heard.

The pandemic has contributed to the ongoing democratic backsliding in many countries around the world. But it has also taught us important lessons when it comes to the use of digital tools and the importance of basic freedoms – including the freedom of expression, a fundamental pillar which is teetering. Across the world, governments are failing to protect the freedom of expression; elsewhere, individuals and groups hide behind free speech to spread hate and discrimination. In Switzerland, citizens are increasingly being called to the ballot box to decide on what counts as acceptable expression. It is a challenging balancing act.

Each week in our SWI swissinfo.ch Democracy Beat we discuss new and different approaches to local democracy stories around the world. And we remain on the lookout for encouraging and inspiring practices, as well as solutions to challenging problems. Like the example of Manami on the remote Japanese island of Ishigaki, who started a citizens’ initiative for a popular vote in her small community and now has to fight with the highest courts in Japan – simply to make her voice heard.

If you have a story to share and a voice to raise – if you care about the present and the future of democracy in your community, let us know, write to me!

Yours democratically,

Bruno Kaufmann