"An open, democratic society in the third world is at best nothing more than a chimera, a pipe dream, a utopian fantasy." Stable, idea based political parties rarely come about from third world democracy as the concept is setup to yield. A class separation gap exists that is greater than that of any first world country, leading to problems that may not allow democracy to be the first step in developing the third world.
Dictionary.com has defined democracy as follows:.
Democracy: De*moc"ra*cy, n.; pl. Democracies. .
1. Government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is retained and directly exercised by the people.
2. Government by popular representation; a form of government in which the supreme power is retained by the people, but is indirectly exercised through a system of representation and delegated authority periodically renewed; a constitutional representative government; a republic.
3. Collectively, the people, regarded as the source of government. --Milton.
The definition of democracy implies a notion of majority rules. However, in the third world the majority is stricken with ignorance and poverty and is unable to defend themselves. The upper class then takes over dominance and has the ability to do as they wish. There is a large gap between the classes which lead to a virtual lack of a middle class, which makes it difficult for the democracy to act as it would in a developed country. Brazil was a great example of this; they were the development model for the third world initially with their GNP tripling. However, the poor still get poorer, about twenty percent of people were malnutrition, unemployment rose, wages fell, and the gap between rich and poor was ever growing. If the majority can't make their voice heard then it may be somewhat of a hopeless quest.
If there is to be government of the people and it is to arise from within, as I will later support, the people must be capable of doing their part and contributing.
