Fascism to be pressed into action? Uprisings amidst crisis of 'bourgeois' democracy

By Harsh Thakor*
A recent survey by Economist Intelligence, the data research arm of "The Economist" magazine, has discovered that less than 8% of the world’s population inhabit in what it terms as “full democracy”. In view of the survey, this form of government only exists in 24 countries. In contrast, 39.9% live under an “authoritarian regime” in 59 countries.
"The Economist", ironically, does deal with the issue of imperialist basis for recognising what is “democratic” and what is not. Yet, the fact is, the survey manifests an epoch in which it is impossible to mask the crystallisation of crisis, which has its roots in the world imperialist system.
According to the survey, 37.6% of the world’s population lives under a regime of “failed democracy”, which exists in 50 countries (29.9% of existing countries). Another 15.2% of the population in 34 countries (20.4%) lives under a so-called “hybrid regimes”.
The results in the study suggests the present situation as increase in “democratic crisis”. After all, politics is the reflection of economy. The crisis of bourgeois democracy is one of the direct products of the imperialism’s crisis of relative overproduction.
One of the most recent illustrations of this economic crisis of real estate in China, mainly affecting giants such as Evergrande, and the bank failures in the USA, which have damaged Silicon Valley Bank, Silvergate and Signature Bank.
An Oxfam report investigated that the concentration of income in the world has intensified.. In the USA, in whole of Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America, inflation rates have frozen the earnings of the masses to a rock bottom. Since 2020, 791 million workers have had to survive on rise in salary which is below inflation.
Against the backdrop of the unresolved crisis, increasingly, uprisings by masses are being reported, with the ruling classes adopting the weapons of repression as the only alternative. Just in the last two years, France and the UK have used or prepared measures and bills to suppress basic rights as strikes and popular street demonstrations.
Meanwhile, throughout Europe, militarization is rapidly progressing, in addition to increase in military budget.
Open popular struggles, such as in Palestine or countries in Latin America, Southeast Asia or even Europe, illustrate how escalating revolts of the masses in the form of demonstrations and popular uprisings are creating tremors around the world.
A recent example of uprising is the historical Operation Al-Aqsa Flood – the tactical offensive of the Palestinian National Resistance. Imperialists have demonstrated utmost anxiety sensing the possibility of victories by popular organizations.
Will fascism be pressed to crush this trend? This is likely to be an outcome of the crisis of bourgeois democracy, whose roots are in relative overproduction.
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*Freelance journalist