Democracy is under stress around the world. Apart from the United States, democracy was practically nonexistent until 1850. The number of democracies rose to around 25 in the interwar period, then fell to fewer than ten during WWII. In 1943, there were only five democracies in Europe. From 1945 to 1960 the number of democracies rose rapidly to about 35, then stagnated during 1960-1980, and then jumped to 90 from 1980 to 2000 after the collapse of communism. There has been no increase in the number of democracies over the past ten years. A number of countries have scaled down or turned their back on democracy in recent years. Autocracies are backsliding, but anocracies are increasing in number. Even Hungary and Poland show new signs of dwindling respect for democracy and human rights.
Against this background, the Icelandic Parliament's failure to ratify the new constitution supported by 2/3 of the voters in the 2012 national referendum is a matter of concern. We should not view the challenges faced by democracy around the world as an excuse for disrespecting democracy in Iceland. On the contrary, we should be especially alert that now is an exceptionally inopportune time to digress from the path of democracy. When democracy is under stress, it is of paramount importance that Parliament do the right thing and show the rest of the world that when, after the financial collapse of 2008, the people of Iceland produced perhaps the most democratic, most inclusive constitution ever made anywhere, they really meant what they did. Iceland is now in a unique position to send the rest of the world an uplifting signal about the beauty and utility of popular democracy, a signal that would be welcomed by advocates of democracy and human rights all over the world. Parliament has neglected to send that message for almost four years now, thus inviting the rest of the world to wonder why.