Fogdog
Well-Known Member
An interesting article that provides background to the developing democracy that is Ukraine.
What the mouth of Sauron said:
“You can’t say it enough, Ukraine is not a democracy. … In American terms, you would call Ukraine a tyranny.”
— Fox News host Tucker Carlson, on his show, Feb. 22
Carlson has been channeling many of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s arguments for invading Ukraine, including that Ukraine is not a democracy. Putin has asserted that the 2014 ouster of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych — what Putin labels a coup d’etat — “did not bring Ukraine any closer to democracy and progress.” He stressed the role of oligarchs and attacks on political opponents and media outlets.
On Wednesday’s show, Carlson expanded on these themes, tossing in another Putin nostrum — that Ukraine is a “client state” of the United States.
“Ukraine, to be technical, is not a democracy,” Carlson said. “Democracies don’t arrest political opponents, and they don’t shut down opposition media, both of which Ukraine has done. And by the way, Ukraine is a pure client state of the United States State Department — again, that’s fine. We are not mad about that, go ahead and run Ukraine if you want, if you think you can do a better job than Ukrainians. Just don’t tell us it’s a democracy.”
The Facts
(excerpted, there is much more in the article)
But what’s on paper is not necessarily the same as what happens in practice. Ukraine’s constitution, for instance, guarantees the right to peaceful assembly, but there is no law that specifically provides for freedom of assembly.
The country has struggled to build up a lasting democratic infrastructure as it has veered between leaders who lean toward Russia or toward the West. Corruption remains a serious problem that government officials have only halfheartedly addressed.
Zelensky has been engaged in a bitter political feud with the man he defeated in a landslide 2019 election, Petro Poroshenko. Prosecutors have sought to arrest Poroshenko on charges of treason and supporting terrorism, but a court in January said he could await trial while released on his own recognizance.
Freedom House, a nonpartisan think tank that ranks democracies, has labeled Ukraine “a transitional or hybrid regime” in one recent report and “partly free” in a second report.
Hungary, Carlson’s fave, is also listed as a “transitional or hybrid regime” and does not rank much higher than Ukraine. Ukraine’s overall Freedom House score, moreover, is higher than that of Mexico and Indonesia, two countries often labeled democracies.
The Economist Intelligence Unit, which in its 2021 Democracy Index listed the United States as a “flawed democracy,” also pegged Ukraine as a “hybrid regime.”
Poroshenko, BTW is Putin's puppet and hated by the vast majority of Ukraine for his vicious actions when he was in control.
What the mouth of Sauron said:
“You can’t say it enough, Ukraine is not a democracy. … In American terms, you would call Ukraine a tyranny.”
— Fox News host Tucker Carlson, on his show, Feb. 22
Carlson has been channeling many of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s arguments for invading Ukraine, including that Ukraine is not a democracy. Putin has asserted that the 2014 ouster of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych — what Putin labels a coup d’etat — “did not bring Ukraine any closer to democracy and progress.” He stressed the role of oligarchs and attacks on political opponents and media outlets.
On Wednesday’s show, Carlson expanded on these themes, tossing in another Putin nostrum — that Ukraine is a “client state” of the United States.
“Ukraine, to be technical, is not a democracy,” Carlson said. “Democracies don’t arrest political opponents, and they don’t shut down opposition media, both of which Ukraine has done. And by the way, Ukraine is a pure client state of the United States State Department — again, that’s fine. We are not mad about that, go ahead and run Ukraine if you want, if you think you can do a better job than Ukrainians. Just don’t tell us it’s a democracy.”
The Facts
(excerpted, there is much more in the article)
But what’s on paper is not necessarily the same as what happens in practice. Ukraine’s constitution, for instance, guarantees the right to peaceful assembly, but there is no law that specifically provides for freedom of assembly.
The country has struggled to build up a lasting democratic infrastructure as it has veered between leaders who lean toward Russia or toward the West. Corruption remains a serious problem that government officials have only halfheartedly addressed.
Zelensky has been engaged in a bitter political feud with the man he defeated in a landslide 2019 election, Petro Poroshenko. Prosecutors have sought to arrest Poroshenko on charges of treason and supporting terrorism, but a court in January said he could await trial while released on his own recognizance.
Freedom House, a nonpartisan think tank that ranks democracies, has labeled Ukraine “a transitional or hybrid regime” in one recent report and “partly free” in a second report.
Hungary, Carlson’s fave, is also listed as a “transitional or hybrid regime” and does not rank much higher than Ukraine. Ukraine’s overall Freedom House score, moreover, is higher than that of Mexico and Indonesia, two countries often labeled democracies.
The Economist Intelligence Unit, which in its 2021 Democracy Index listed the United States as a “flawed democracy,” also pegged Ukraine as a “hybrid regime.”
Poroshenko, BTW is Putin's puppet and hated by the vast majority of Ukraine for his vicious actions when he was in control.
) ) but for anyone who will need it. It is a new statement, we will see where it goes..
