According to the bi-annual democracy indices (those from Freedom House and The Economist), yet again democracy is under threat everywhere. The northern hemisphere has proven particularly vulnerable to negative trends affecting the quality of democracy. In the Global South, Latin America continues to represent the most democratic region, but 2018 (a year of presidential elections in key countries like Colombia, Mexico and Brazil), has largely consolidated deterioration.
Corrupt elections, attacks on freedom of expression, and a rise in digital authoritarianism and surveillance of citizens have been worldwide worrying trends. Furthermore, the disregard for international human rights standards for migrants and refugees adds to the deterioration of liberal democracies.
In Europe and the US, societies are seemingly losing their trust in traditional political parties, and we are witnessing the rise of worrisome populist and autocratic trends, and similar scenarios are developing in Latin America.
