Democracy's three global fronts

Anthony Barnett (London, OK): Just back from a warm and crowded Compass conference (see post below) where I substituted for Helena Kennedy at a Power Inquiry session on globalisation and democracy, along with John Keane, chaired by Pam Giddy. As the remit was global, I talked about the three great fronts of democracy today and the forms of solidarity they demand: assisting the achievement of the fundamental of democracy - eg: free voting, free speech and the rule of law - to those societies which do not have them (from China to Saudi Arabia); developing appropriate forms of democracy for the shaping global institutions (transparency, accountability); and joining participatory and deliberative forms of democracy to representative mechanisms in countries like our own. The internet will help with this. I drew heavily (well, completely) on the article I wrote with Isabel Hilton that sets it out, called Democracy and openDemocracy. It was a small but packed room, a serious atmosphere, good questions. I met Katharine Hamnett who was in the audience and who has been a hero of mine.