Political parties are crucial for making democracy work, yet they are often seen as the weakest link in the chain of democratic institutions. International assistance to political parties, a relatively new phenomenon, raises questions of what a democratic party is, which parties should be assisted and how.
International IDEA and UNDP brought together some 70 experts and practitioners at a workshop in Stockholm on 23 January 2007 to assess the state of multiparty systems and the effectiveness of international democracy assistance aimed at strengthening political parties.
Participants included representatives from party internationals, governments and donor agencies including foundations involved in democracy promotion.
Gunilla Carlsson, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation, and Vidar Helgesen, Secretary-General of International IDEA
Gunilla Carlsson, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation, opened the workshop underlining the role of political parties in representing citizen’s views.
In his welcoming remarks Vidar Helgesen, International IDEA’s Secretary General, spoke of the important role political parties play in democratic consolidation. “The strengths and weaknesses of representative democracy strongly relate to how well the representatives do their job – and political parties play one of the most important roles in acting as the link between the political system and society”, he said.
Thomas Carothers, a leading authority on democracy promotion and democratization, presented his pioneering book on the topic: Confronting the Weakest Link: Aiding Political Parties in New Democracies.
Tioulong Saumura, Member of the Cambodian National Assembly
Kasuka Mutukwa, Secretary General of the Southern African Development Cooperation Parliamentary Forum and Saumura Tioulong, Member of the Cambodian National Assembly, discussed party assistance from the recipient’s perspective. Ms Tioulong made a passionate appeal for more international help and emphasized the importance of assistance, especially for opposition parties in new democracies.
The workshop addressed such issues as the potential for bias in the provision of political party assistance and the consensus about what constitutes an efficient and democratically functioning party. It also looked at how political parties select candidates for government positions, and what needs to be done if parties are to regain the trust of their constituencies.
For the past three years, International IDEA has conducted an extensive research programme on political parties (see “State of the Party – Findings on key issues from Research and Dialogue with Political Parties in Developing Democracies”). Based on the information already gathered, International IDEA will develop policy recommendations and produce capacity-building tools.
Kasuka Mutukwa (to the right), Secretary-General of the Southern African Development Cooperation Parliamentary Forum, speaks with a workshop participant
International IDEA will continue to provide a platform for exchanging information on assistance for political parties and will lobby for better standards in this area. It will also convene a number of international workshops, complemented by regional activities which focus on specific concerns in particular countries.
International IDEA will publish a policy paper by mid 2007 which outlines the issues for political party assistance and a Practitioners’ Guide in 2008 which focuses on best practice in the field.
Video of individuals interviews are available and video of the presentations will be made available on International IDEA’s website at http://www.idea.int soon.
For more information on the workshop and on International IDEA’s work in the field of effective party assistance please contact Matthias Catón, Programme Officer for Political Parties, e-mail: m.caton@idea.int
From the left: Thomas Carothers, Vice President for Studies–International Politics and Governance, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Gunilla Carlsson, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation and Vidar Helgesen, Secretary-General of International IDEA
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