Various countries in Africa have experienced democratic backsliding.Christopher Fomunyoh, a longtime Africa expert with the U.S.-basedNational Democratic Institute, said in 2020 testimony to theU.S. House of Representatives' Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Global Human Rights that there were strong democratic advances in Africa (especiallyWest Africa) occurred between the late 1980s to the late 2010s, but that by 2019, democratic trends had reversed, with the result being "there are now fewer democracies in Africa" in 2021 than in 1991.[4] Fomunyoh noted that in the first 20 years of the 21st century, about a dozen countries insub-Saharan Africa weakened or abolished constitutionalterm limits for presidents; these moves weakenedconstitutionalism to benefit incumbents, removed one method of facilitating "the peaceful and orderly renewal of political leadership" and led to "excessive fragmentation and polarization of thepolity, and, in some cases outright violence, and the further shrinking of political space."[4]
Historian Edward Watts lists the following causes as contributing to the devolution of theRoman Republic into an empire, on the theme of violating long-established norms of the republic:[5]
Abuse of political processes to personally punish opponents (by not approving a treaty) and obstructionist tactics that blocked reforms to deal with economic inequality, forcing proponents to use more aggressive political tactics.
Soldiers becoming loyal to their commanders rather than the state, with their commanders seeking personal gains.
Resorting to violence rather than political processes to solve disputes. The first politicalassassinations in centuries led to armed factions influencing votes and elections, and tomob violence and civil war.
Complacency among people who found it difficult to imagine that a centuries-old republic could fail.
Ability of Augustus, the first emperor, to prevent control of Rome by foreigners and corrupt politicians, and to prevent civil war through personal dominance.
Watts points out one of the main features of a functioning republican system is that loss of an election does not result in imprisonment or execution.
The way the government came to power: During theGerman Revolution of 1918–19, backers of a republic joined with military mutineers who refused to fight in the face of certain defeat inWorld War I. Thestab-in-the-back myth counterfactually proposed that Germany could have continued fighting successfully had it not been for the surrender, but for that and other reasons, many Germans blamed the republicans for losing the war, and the new system of government did not have widespread support.
Article 48 of the constitution, which gave the President the power to rule by emergencydecree, a practice which was adopted as normal lawmaking broke down.
The ability of the Parliament to remove the Chancellor without assigning a replacement, which left the office vacant in 1932.
A practice of ignoring the Constitution if a law passed with a two-thirds majority, which was done in the passing of theEnabling Act of 1933, which abolished democracy.
The lack of democratic tradition and experience in lawmaking.
TheReichstag fire establishing a pretext for an anti-Communist crackdown and abolition of civil liberties, though it is disputed as to whether it was afalse flag operation.
AfterWorld War I, a semi-democratic system emerged in theEmpire of Japan as an experiment, with important steps including universal male suffrage in 1925 and theRikken Seiyūkai andRikken Minseito engaging in competitive elections. However, a partisan divide emerged between the parties, leading to many challenges such as theMay 15 incident which assassinated Prime MinisterInukai Tsuyoshi, growing economic inequality and poverty, and increasing military influence in politics. These events culminated in theImperial Japanese Army dissolving political parties in response to resentment of economic inequality, dragging Japan into theSecond Sino-Japanese War in 1937.[6]
