2008 Woodie Awards
Democracy Forum
Several speakers visit the campus to discuss international democratic efforts.
Erika Batey
Issue date: 10/29/04 Section: News
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The first speaker of the night was former Ambassador to Senegal Harriet Elam-Thomas. She was extremely positive and stated that Senegal had become a model for stability in western Africa. She also mentioned that she personally had worked with the government to thwart attacks on United States interests within Senegal's borders.
In order to have a democracy, Elam-Thomas stated, a country must have "a free press, an independent judiciary, and a viable economy." According to her, Senegal has achieved these aspects for the most part, has "a media that speaks its mind," and is an example of a country where democracy has truly taken hold. However, Elam-Thomas noted that the country is currently failing to accelerate economic change. Unemployment is rising and she believes that this could be one of the principal threats to stability.
The second panelist was retired Lt. General Jay Garner who worked as an administrator in postwar Iraq. In the opening of his speech, he announced, "You cannot take the U.S. template of democracy and stamp it on another country, especially not in the Middle East," while drawing a few cheers from the audience.
He continued to state seven tasks that he feels are necessary if the U.S. wants to succeed in Iraq. The first is to halt Iran's influence in Iraq. The second is to prevent a Shiite takeover in Iraq during the up-coming elections. His answer to this problem is to create three to four federal regions in Iraq, each governed by a different ethnic or religious identity in Iraq and united under a weak central government. He compared this concept to the development of the U.S. from thirteen weakly united individual states into a much stronger national government.
Garner stated that it is essential for the Iraqis to be comfortable in their own government structure. His third proposed task is to ensure the protection of minority rights. Fourth, oil must be shared with the people of Iraq. His fifth proposal is to employ the unemployed youth. Referencing President Roosevelt's Depression era projects, he stated that projects involving youth would keep them off the street and help rebuild the country. His sixth proposal is to stimulate the economy. Finally, the U.S. should develop a strategy to create an independent Kurdistan to prevent civil war from breaking out.