How Our Readers View Democracy And Its Opponents

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) We wanted to know whether our readers believe that democracy is stronger than its enemies. Their answers are committed, provocative – and also reflective. This content was published on January 7, 2026 - 09:00 3 minutes

As a reporter I cover developments in democracy where the Swiss perspective becomes relevant. I am Swiss and have long been fascinated by the way public discussions shape society.

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If you ask for the enemies of democracy, they will come. Some of the aggressive emails I've received recently bear witness to this. Individual contributions to our debate, Do you trust that your country can withstand attacks against its democracy?, can also be read in this way.

At the same time, there are other contributions that characterise democratic states like Switzerland as“autocracies”. It often remains unclear whether users are expressing themselves in this way out of fear of losing democracy or because they enjoy the provocation. However, it is particularly noticeable in the debate because users have also commented on the situation in genuinely authoritarian states such as Cuba or Venezuela.

One of the most committed users is“Jorg Hiker”, who also wrote the first post in the debate:“The problem is that democracy in many Western countries can be described as hollowed out or dysfunctional.” The election of the“so-called extreme parties” could therefore be seen as“a desperate attempt” to restore democracy.

The word“can” seems important in his article: although there are political actors who describe it this way,“Jorg Hiker” refrains from claiming that this is actually the case.

For Switzerland,“Jorg Hiker” sees the situation as somewhat better, due to“relatively few political taboo topics, considerable powers of the local authorities and a relatively weak political class that is close to the people”.

Pessimistic view of democracies

Many users take a pessimistic view. They comment on the situation in democracies such as Spain and Brazil. Some users link their pessimism to the Middle East conflict and their country's position on the war in Gaza.

“Mr” writes in Japanese about a“crisis” in representative democracy. They criticise the fact that politicians, once elected, are hardly accountable to their voters. Accordingly,“Mr” would like their country to become a democracy based on the Swiss model, with strong direct democratic elements:“I think we should become a direct democracy, like Switzerland. I think that indirect democracies are heading for collapse.”

The descriptions from authoritarian states are vivid. User“Wolland66” writes:“There is no such thing as democracy in Cuba. There is only one party, and any dissenting opinion is rejected, pushed aside and, if you insist, punished.”

For“Wolland66”, international sympathisers of the Cuban government are intolerable:“It is incredible that so many people in Europe who claim to love democracy support this government that holds almost a thousand political prisoners, many of them just for demonstrating and shouting slogans, some of them with sentences of more than 20 years.” The article ends with a call against Cuba's government and in favour of“promoting free elections in Cuba”.

Take part in our debate:

More Debate Hosted by: Benjamin von Wyl Do you trust that your country can withstand attacks against its democracy?

Democracies are increasingly coming under threat, both from within and without. How do your country's institutions fare?

Join the discuss Sep 11, 2025 42 Likes 110 Comments View the discu

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