Visiting Professor, Wojciech Sadurski, wrote an op-ed published in EuroNews on what he believes is needed to restore liberal democracy.
Firstly, we need to realize that the onslaught of populism was a reaction to deficits rather than excesses of liberal democracy. The latter ideal carries with it certain promises; those of genuine equality of opportunity, of equal political access to political decision-making and of a truly secular state, to mention just three. Have we been faithful to the ideal and consistent in fulfilling those promises? A sincere introspection must bring an answer which is, at best, ambiguous.
Secondly, we need to carry out a “democratic audit” in order to consider what democratic resources are available to liberal democrats in the countries currently ruled by populists. Let’s consider Poland. Yes, the Law and Justice party (PiS) and its leader Jarosław Kaczyński have a firm stranglehold on almost all centres of power, and can almost single-handedly take all the important decisions, despite social protests and constitutional constraints on power.