Can Elections be Harmful to Democracy?
Rt Hon Stephen Byers MP delivers lecture in Ukraine
September 2009
During a JSMT visit to Ukraine, the Rt Hon Stephen Byers MP delivered a fascinating lecture at the International Centre for Policy Studies (ICPS) on the theme ‘Can Elections be Harmful to Democracy?’
Mr. Byers, current Chairman of the Board of the Yalta European Strategy, addressed a large group of young Ukrainian leaders on the opportunities and pitfalls of the democratic process, in both mature and developing democracies. In the short term, Mr. Byers argued that elections can sometimes do more harm than good to the democratic process. He warned against equating the holding of elections with true democracy. He stated, “Democracy is about more than free elections, and Ukrainians—both ordinary citizens and political leaders—are learning this the hard way.”
Mr. Byers MP
In the long term, he continued, elections are an essential component of any democratic system. Without them, Mr. Byers pointed out, leaders cannot be held accountable, and good governance becomes impossible because the interests of key segments of the population are not taken into account. The event concluded with Mr. Byers noting that while Ukraine’s democratic progress has been slower than many had hoped, the country is still a young democracy. “When we were a young democracy, we were chopping off people’s heads,” he stated. “By those standards, Ukraine is not doing too badly.”
The event, organized jointly by ICPS and the British Council, marked the launch of the 2010 Fellowship Programme of the John Smith Memorial Trust. Aisling Conboy, Events Manager for the JSMT, spoke to the audience prior to Mr. Byers’ speech, about the Trust’s work and encouraged suitable applicants to apply for the 2010 Programme.
Talking to Victor Liakh (2008 Fellow)
Following the lecture, 2006 Fellow Denys Bazilevych organized a gathering to enable Mr. Byers to meet with John Smith Fellows. In attendance were Kostya Krasovsky (2006), Vitali Gatseliuk (2009), Svitlana Zalishchuk (2008), Tetyana Monayeva (2003), Yulia Zelvenska (2008), Viktor Liakh (2008), Maxim Shkilov (2002), and Olga Reka (2003). 2009 Fellow Bohdan Kolodkevych found meeting Mr. Byers particularly useful. Bohdan, who has recently been appointed as Head of Campaigning at the Chernivtsi regional headquarters of the “VO” Batkivshchyna political party (the party of the Prime Minister of Ukraine), was able to discuss election strategy and campaigning with the former Cabinet Minister – particularly valuable to Bohdan in the run up to the launch of the presidential campaign due to officially start in October 2009.
On 24th September, Mr. Byers delivered the opening address for the Intercultural Navigators – International Networking Event Launch, held at the Hotel Rus. The Intercultural Navigators programme is a leadership programme for young people focused on culture and diversity.
Whilst in Kiev, Aisling and Mr. Byers spent time visiting the work places of our John Smith Fellows – seeing first hand the difference they are making and receiving updates on the Fellows’ action plans. Organised by 2009 Fellow Oleksander Vodyannikov and his colleagues at the OSCE, Mr. Byers delivered a speech on the topic ‘Ukraine’s European Integration: an Outside View.’ The seminar was attended by representatives of the Ukrainian press, ministries and Parliament, and universities. Oleksander also welcomed Aisling to the Rule of Law Unit at the OSCE offices where he updated Aisling on current projects, for example the Constitutional Complaint Project which is working to train courts on how to deal with complaints as done in Europe.
2009 Fellow Vitaliy Gatseliuk, who is the Chief Consultant of the Parliamentary Committee on Legislative Support of Law Enforcement, organized a private tour of the parliament for Aisling and updated her on progress with his action plan. Aisling delivered a presentation to potential applicants at the Parliamentary Committees meeting where 25 young people attended to hear about the Fellowship Programme and what it has to offer.
Aisling (left) with 2007 Fellow Volodymyr Kuzminskyy (right) and his colleague from EveryChild Ukraine
Aisling also visited the work place of 2003 Fellow Olga Reka, who is Editor of the ‘Profile-Ukraine’ news magazine; 2002 Fellow Vyacheslav Sorokovsky who welcomed Aisling to the office of DESPRO - Decentralisation Support Project to Ukraine’; and Victor Liakh (2008 Fellow) who is Director of the East European Foundation working to improve life for vulnerable young people in Ukraine. For more information about Victor’s work please Download PDF
The John Smith Memorial Trust would like to thank the ICPS, OSCE, the British Embassy in Kiev, the British Council, and its John Smith Fellows Vitaliy Gatseliuk, Bohdan Kolodkevych, Oleksander Vodyannikov, Denys Bazilevych, Stanislav Shevchuk, and special thanks to Volodymyr Kuzminskyy.