International Day of Democracy: "The challenges must be met"

"We cannot take for granted what we have, neither our passport nor Democracy". The time that Bárbara Matias, a former student of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, spent as a researcher in Kosovo, "a newborn democracy", made her aware of what is taken for granted in Europe and in Portugal. In "a country that is still fighting for its sovereignty", something as simple as freedom of movement is not a given. She recalls how her colleagues could not go to Croatia, four hours away, just because they had "a Kosovan passport".

On this International Day of Democracy, Bárbara and José Limão, alumni of the Institute for Political Studies at the UCP, warn of the dangers that threaten the regime. "I think it's very important not to forget that Democracy is, by nature, fragile," says José. They speak passionately about the subject and contribute daily to its "deepening and preservation". Bárbara always knew "that she wanted the world of international relations" and today works at the European Commission's External Action on "counter-terrorism and the prevention of violent extremism". Her colleague is a consultant at FIPRA, a consultancy based in Brussels.

Barbara's role is to promote "Human Rights, the Rule of Law and Democracy" in partner countries. José's work as a consultant is also "very much based on what Democracy is". He considers himself to be "a bridge" between the people and the institutions, which "pulls the parliamentarians and the Commission a little bit down to earth", ensuring that they achieve "their main mission, which is to serve the people". "What we do is give a voice" to people and businesses who would otherwise not be able to "influence and contribute to the legislative process", he proudly explains.

The experience makes them speak of this special day with a divided feeling. "I am optimistic, I see the world in colour and with rainbows, although with my feet very much on the ground," says Barbara. However, she sees no reason to celebrate. "We have to be alert, because Democracy is indeed in retreat."

These are strong statements, but Barbara justifies them: "I have seen too much". "After Kosovo, I went back to NATO, where I was working in the operations section, with Iraq," she says. She followed the "phase of when General Qasem Soleimani was assassinated", and the "giant social eruption" that followed. But it was "the fraudulent elections on 9 August 2020" in Belarus that marked her most. "I caught that whole period of post-election, of state repression," she shares. As "desk officer in Belarus" she dealt "with the team of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaia, the unrecognised President" in the sense of "helping so that Democracy would prevail."

It was "challenging, but very interesting to see a democracy fall, and to have to respond, on the side of the actor defending Democracy," Barbara comments. It reminds her of how "the world is becoming increasingly multipolar", and how the "antagonists of Democracy" are growing, in China, the US and even within the EU.

José shares these concerns. "The challenges it is going through are much bigger," he admits. He believes that "they have to be faced without any kind of reserve". "We must not let them get to the point where we are more dependent on their failure than our success." He gives the example of the invasion of Ukraine, as an opportunity for "the democratic world to show its strength".

For the new generation of political scientists who will have to face these challenges and continue this work of preserving Democracy, the colleagues leave two pieces of advice: "do not always think you are on the right side of things" nor "allow yourselves to be absolutized in yourselves". Barbara adds: you should "go out, talk and when you've had enough, decide to go out and talk more, that's my advice."