The recent corona pandemic is badly effecting the various aspects of the world’s affairs. The hard lockdown policies of different states are greatly suffering the global economy. Some of the political analysts call corona virus a big issue then post 9/11 terrorism. According to them, back in the day the world was fighting with a well known enemy. There were a number of groups with specific redical mind set and get up. They were involved in spreading of terror in the world and the international community was struggling to counter them. The things are different in recent corona outbreak, this time the enemy is invisible, minute and microscopic organism. It is badly demaging the world’s economy like the human’s health in a time when it’s structure is hardly known. It is not only a serious threat to the world’s economy, but is also a big challenge to the existing world order.
Francis Fukuyama is an international relations scholer and political scientist. He presented his theory of Last Man and End of History in 90s, after the events of Soviet’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, Soviet dissolvotion and fall of Barlin wall. In his thoughts, he urges that the western liberal democracy has defeated the other models of government. It has now the best form of government and has brought human to the top level of peace and stability. According to Francis Fukuyama, human beings are in constant ideological evolution. The western liberal democracy is the final stage of human political and ideological evolution and it is the best form of government.
But less than 30 years later, the claim and ideas of Francis Fukuyama about best form of government is looking in danger after the outbreak of coronavirus. There are a number of conspiracy theories about the nature and spreading of coronavirus, but these thoughts are yet to be proved. Up to now the current and only fact is that the coronavirus is a serious threat to the global economy and world order. The corona virus is impacting almost every society around the world irrespective of what sort of government it follows.
Corona virus has suffered both West and gulf states. The West states are mostly based on liberal democratic order, on the other hand gulf states are mostly governed by Authoritarian form of government. China is one of the major power in the world, its government is also based on strict Authoritarian order and not that open like west in terms of freedom of speech and expression. Mijority of people in the west and in Pakistan are praising China’s policies via countering the said penadimic. China was the first state where coronavirus reported last year. But there strict rules, complete policies of lockdown and scientific monitoring made sure somehow control on corona outbreak. As a result the rate of death in China is relatively less than those of Italy, Spain, the USA and several other democratic nations. There policies were so strong and effective that the outbreak partially reached to the populated and commercial capital Beijing. In Wuhan city the life has started again with normal routine, the city which was the main hub of coronavirus and firstly the said virus reported there. In a mijority of gulf states, there is no democracy they are governed by absolute monarchy. Saudi Arabia and other gulf countries handled the situation very rationaly and shut down every place timely. They even closed masques, a step that is not possible in Pakistan that is relatively open society.
On the other hand, the United States of America calls herself a champion of democracy and human rights, her president Donald Trump is always annoy with the liberal media on a number of issues. He is not open to criticism. He is in in the news for such type of behavior. This time he blammed world health organization WHO, for not declaring corona outbreak as an international emergency on time. Moreover, he stopped the American fundings to WHO and criticized the said organization for extra favoring China. The WHO is a international organization looking the health issues through out the world. It is mostly funded by the states whole world and European liberal democratic countries. During the corona pandemic the WHO has made several mistakes. It a time when Italy was stopping its flights for China, the WHO didn’t concentrate on the issue properly and protested on Italy’s act. The WHO is based on democratic principles therefore was unable to make quick decisions.
When the penadimic broke out in the early days, the rest of the world was trying to make policies regarding social distancing and lockdown to restrict the virus. The whole Europe was enjoying the liberty given to them by European union. European union is a organization established on the democratic principles of cooperation and development of Europe. People from different states was traveling from one state to another on cars and trucks inside Europe without any restrictions of borders. There were no proper plain about flights that were traveling inside Europe and the USA. That’s why the penadimic spread quickly in the west.
It is too early to say something about this, but once the penadimic is over more interesting comparison will come forward between both forms of government. So far After the strong polices of Authoritarian states against the corona pandemic, thoughts about perfection of democracy as a system of government seems in danger, and the people might think other options too in terms of government.
Great ,very informative…