The roundtable: ‘Achieving Collective Democratic Gains in the Build up to the Third Summit for Democracy’, in partnership with the Global Democracy Coalition (GDC).
The aim of the session is to take collective stock of the Second Summit for Democracy held on 29 and 30 March 2023 and discuss how existing networks and processes, including the GDC, can be better coordinated to achieve a stronger impact leading up to the Third Summit for Democracy, to be held in 2024 and hosted by the Republic of Korea. The discussion will particularly focus on inputs by democracy activists and on how we can foster a new democratic wave globally.
Run of show:
13.05-13:10
Introduction to the speakers and description of agenda by Jonas Parello-Plesner, Executive Director of the Alliance of Democracies Foundation
13.10-13:15
Welcome remarks by Kevin Casas-Zamora, Secretary General of International IDEA, who leads GDC
13.15-13:20
Remarks by Nicole Bibbins Sedaca, Executive Vice President of Freedom House
13.20-13:25
Hardy Merriman, President of the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict, to present his publication on A Playbook for Countering Authoritarian Threat
13:25-13.30
Leopoldo López, Venezuelan Political Opposition Leader and Co-Founder of the World Liberty Congress, who will introduce the democracy defenders
13.30-14.20
Moderated discussion among selected regional democracy activists Moderated by Elisenda Ballesté Buxó, Project Coordinator, North America Programme and GDC, International IDEA
Democracy Activists:
Europe: Veronica Tsepkalo, Founder and Chair of the Belarus Women’s Foundation, Belarus Opposition Politician. (Belarus)
Asia: Nathan Law, Democracy Activist and former legislator (Hong Kong)
Africa: Maximilienne Ngo Mbe, Human Rights Activist and Executive Director of Network of Human Rights Defenders of Central Africa (Cameroon)
Latin America: Jorge Jraissati, Freedom Advocate and Director for Alumni for Liberty (Venezuela)
14.20-14.30
Conclusion by Elisenda and our next joint steps in advancing the global democracy agenda
More information relevant to the roundtable
The Global Democracy Coalition:
The Global Democracy Coalition was formed in October of 2021, convened by International IDEA and other democracy and democracy organizations from around the world. The goal was to convene organizations committed to the advancement of democracy, to engage collectively and constructively with the first Summit for Democracy, hosted by United States government, in December 2021. The GDC organized a Forum ahead of the first Summit to place issues on the Summit agenda.
What started as an informal group has evolved into a strategic multi-stakeholder alliance of more than 100 democracy organizations from around the world committed to advance and protect democracy worldwide and to influence the Summits for Democracy. It provides a platform for dialogue, knowledge exchange and experience-sharing, and advocacy around the Summits for Democracy and beyond. The Coalition works collectively on strategic issues relevant to the global democracy agenda.
The World Liberty Congress:
The World Liberty Congress’s main objective is to bring together leaders and pro-democracy movements under autocratic regimes, to learn and support each other in specific action-oriented areas.
The WLC focuses on supporting at a political, strategic, financial, and legal level for movements and leaders that align under the four universal principles of:
Free and Fair Elections
The Rule of Law
Respect for Human Rights
The Restoration of Freedom and Democracy
Fostering a Fourth Democratic Wave: A playbook for countering the authoritarian threat:
This publication is a joint project between the Atlantic Council and the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC), aimed at catalysing support for nonviolent pro-democracy movements fighting against authoritarian rule. It was written by Hardy Merriman, Patrick Quirk, and Ash Jain
Jonas Parello-Plesner, Nicole Bibbins Sedaca, Leopoldo Lopez and Kevin Casas-Zamora were all Task Force members for the development of the publication.
The project recognizes that civil resistance movements—using tactics such as strikes, boycotts, civil disobedience, and a range of other nonviolent tactics—are one of the most powerful forces for democracy worldwide and therefore central to reversing the last seventeen years of democratic recession.
The project produced a three-part report, titled Fostering a Fourth Democratic Wave: A Playbook for Countering the Authoritarian Threat, that:
Proposes new approaches and tools to support civil resistance movements
Advances a new international norm — the “Right to Assist” pro-democracy movements
Develops strategic and tactical options to constrain authoritarian regimes and drive up the cost of their repression