LONDON — U.S. President George W. Bush has at times seemed to regard "democracy" as a panacea for all the problems of government throughout the world. It's far from clear, though, what exactly he means by "democracy." If a government is duly chosen by a majority of voters in a fair election, should not the results be accepted even if they are unpalatable?
"Democratic" elections, if they are to be seen as fair, require some important preconditions. One of these is an independent legal system and acceptance by voters of the rule of law and outlawing corrupt practices. Another is that voting rules are transparent and electoral registers properly maintained to prevent fraudulent votes being cast. A third is that the vote count be viewed as fair, and confirmed by an independent body.
But these alone are insufficient. There must be a willingness to accept that elections could bring about a change of government. Other necessary rules include a fair system of deciding constituency boundaries. But the existence of a free press (as well as other media) must be an overriding condition.