To what extent does the collapse of authoritarianism in Spain, Poland and South Africa reflect 'the power of the liberal idea' popularised in Francis Fukuyama's notion of 'the end of history'?

However, Fukuyama’s liberal idea does not suggest that human and political ideology derives purely from an economic standpoint. He considers Hegel’s account of History based on the ‘struggle for recognition’ which suggests that man wants to be recognised as a human being with a certain worth or dignity.  Therefore values such as self-esteem and self-worth along with civil rights such as the right to practice your chosen religion, the right to have education, and the right to free speech must all play an important role in Fukuyama’s liberal idea.

The collapse of authoritarianism, and subsequent transition to democracy in Spain came about by transformation; that is to say that reformers within the ruling oligarchy initiated the reform. The transitions to democracy by Poland and South Africa, on the other hand, were a great deal less amicable than Spain’s transition. South Africa’s and Poland’s transition was one exercised by transplacement, where democratisation is generally a result of combined actions of the Government and the opposition, usually through negotiations.

The collapse of authoritarianism in Spain became a reality soon after the decline of the Francoist dictatorial regime which governed Spain for much of the 20th century. The breakdown of the regime came about for a number of reasons, not least, the death of Franco but also due to economic and recognition factors such as those expressed in the notion of the liberal idea. Acute shortages and starvation wages were widespread in Spain during the early 1940s, a period which saw the worst inflation in Spain's history. All this meant the regime was forced to make some changes in order to curb the growing pressure for industrial development. Spain's need for food, raw materials, energy, and credit made it necessary for the country to establish some link to the international economy. Spain achieved this goal when the United States decided to seek the political and strategic advantages of Spanish friendship in the face of an increasingly aggressive Soviet Union. With the infusion of American capital, Spain's economy revived, and living standards began to improve. There was a degree of economic liberalisation, and industrial production increased significantly in the 1950s, laying some foundations for a move towards a slightly more democratic state.

Rapid economic development had political and social consequences, and was to play a significant part in laying the foundations of democracy by giving the Spanish public a taste of democracy. Economic expansion resulted in a larger and better-educated middle class than had ever existed in Spain, as well as in a new urban working class. Furthermore, the unprecedented degree of foreign cultural influence had a marked impact on Spanish society. All of these factors contributed to an increasing level of dissatisfaction with the restrictions that Franco had imposed. These restrictions were seen as impediments to further growth and modernisation.

The Opus Dei, who were an influential group in Francoist politics, had hoped that greater economic prosperity would eliminate hostility toward Francoism, but tension between an increasingly dynamic Spanish society and the oppressive regime that governed it resulted in growing domestic opposition throughout the 1960s. The expanding industrial labour force became increasingly militant. Workers organized clandestine commissions and recurrent strikes, despite them still officially being illegal. In addition, regional discontent was giving rise to escalating violent protests in the Basque region and in Catalonia. Agitation was also growing among university students who resented the strictures of Franco's regime. There was even opposition among the members of one of Franco's former bastions of support, the clergy. The younger liberal priests in the Catholic Church in Spain had responded with enthusiasm to the Second Vatican Council, which emphasized individual liberties and progressive social policies. The priests were also increasingly vocal in their attacks on the oppressive aspects of Francoism.

Political opposition to the regime mounted on all sides in 1974 and 1975. Labour strikes, in which even actors participated, spread across the country. Universities were in a state of turmoil, as the popular clamour for democracy grew more vociferous. Terrorist activity reached such a level that the government placed the Basque region under martial law in April 1975. By the time of Franco's death on November 20, 1975, Spain was in a chronic state of crisis and the decline of the regime had reached terminal velocity.

Judging by the economic liberalisation experienced by Spain and the struggle by the working-class throughout the 1960’s for what could be described as ‘recognition’ of their civil liberties, it would appear that the events that lead to the collapse of authoritarianism in Spain reflected greatly on ‘the power of the liberal idea’.

As mentioned earlier, Poland’s transition to democracy was different to that of Spain’s. Poland, under communist rule since 1945 as one of the countries that made up the soviet block in Eastern Europe, suffered from a variety of vastly undemocratic factors. Firstly, a single party monopoly existed, where there were representatives from other parties but only the PUWP formed government. Martial law was maintained which was admittedly unique in the East European experience, and gross lack of participation in party politics ensued. The breakdown of authoritarian rule and the inauguration of democracy came about for a variety of reasons, not just due to the breakdown of communism. The very poor economic situation in Poland made the population realise that communism was not necessarily the solution with its vastly planned economy. The social structure in Poland at this time was of a young society who were more often than not idealist and the vast majority did like to entertain the idea of communist rule from the Soviet Union. These factors coupled with the crisis and deep divisions within the Communist Party (PUWP), and the growing reluctance of the Soviet Union to invade to ensure reform did not occur led to Poland being granted independence through a multitude of reforms.

Lech Walesa became the first directly elected president of post communist Poland in December 1990. His election provided a further stage in the dismantling of the Round Table agreement negotiated in 1989, between the then communist party and the Solidarity Opposition. As a whole Poland has succeeded in its attempts to consolidate its newfound democracy. Although Poland has had some vast economic problems there are also factors that indicate success in certain areas of the economy. Poland has made one of the most successful transitions in Eastern Europe to a free market economy. Since 1999, it has also met the requirements necessary to join the EU, therefore “guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights, and respect for and protection of minorities”.

Poland’s ascendancy to a democratic state appears in some ways to fit in with Fukuyama’s notions of the liberal idea and the end of history in terms of progressing from a communist state to political ideology of democracy. Although the economic liberalisation has arguably not been as great as that achieved in Spain, the Hegelian ‘struggle for recognition’ that Fukuyama draws upon occurred through the realisation of the deficiencies of the Soviet Union’s communist regime.

The case of South Africa and their transition to democracy is of an entirely different nature to those transitions shaped by Spain and Poland. The greatest obstacle to democratisation in South Africa was the existence of a racially and ethnically based system of social, economic and political domination, which we call apartheid. Essentially in South Africa under apartheid existed one of the worlds most oppressive regimes. There were restrictions on black representation, and even the measures that allowed black representation were so minimal its existence was effectively pretence. Segregation in almost all areas possible and the black majority faced many political, economical and social limitations.

The oppressive governance inevitably led to uprisings of both a violent and peaceful nature. The first serious challenges to apartheid emerged in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. Black opposition manifested itself in the so called ‘defiance campaign’ against the pass law system for non-whites. When de Klerk was appointed Prime Minister he seemed to pave the way for some kind of democratisation. Most people thought that by the 1980’s that a black majority rule was impossible but de Klerk released political prisoners, most notably Nelson Mandela. The social structure of South Africa contributed to the democratisation; the diminishing size of the white population in South Africa suggests that 2010 just 11% of the country will be white. International condemnation of the situation also assisted in the transition. It did so not just through economic sanctions but also through the banning of the country from sports events such as the Olympics and various other measures designed to force South Africa to change its way of thinking. However, it was the economic sanctions and trade embargos that played the biggest part in leading South Africa to Fukuyama’s universal homogenous state of democracy, because of the crippling effect it had on their economy. After a long and bumpy negotiation process, marked by much opportunistic violence from the right wing and its surrogates and in some instances sanctioned by the elements of the state, South Africa held its first democratic election in April 1994 under an Interim Constitution.

Due to the unique nature of South Africa’s transition from authoritarianism to democracy it is difficult to consider whether it reflects the ‘power of the liberal idea’. However there does appear to have been economic liberalisation in terms of the outside worlds sanctions being lifted, and also a struggle for recognition by the black population, hence it could be argued that Francis Fukuyama’s notion of the liberal idea is relevant.

As seen by the above three cases, namely in Spain, Poland, and South Africa, it would appear that there may be some plausibility in Fukuyama’s notion of ‘the power of liberal idea’ due to the countries’ transitions from authoritarianism to democracy reflecting Fukuyama’s notion. However, his claim that democracy is most definitely the ‘end of history’ is much more challengeable. For one, many of today’s Western democracies are not egalitarian at all and therefore its seems ludicrous to think that we have reached a political ideology that cannot be surpassed even though the objective of the ideology, egalitarianism, it seems cannot be met. One thing that is for sure, however, is that Francis Fukuyama’s notions will continue to be a highly debated issue, for years to come, until maybe one day time may eventually prove his notions either right or wrong.

Bibliography

Arango, E. (1995), Spain Democracy Regained 2nd Edition, Westview

Grugel, J (2002), Democratisation: A Critical Introduction, Palgrave

Heywood, P (1995), The Government and Politics of Spain, Palgrave

Millard, F. (2000), Presidents and Democratisation in Poland. Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics, vol. 16, no. 3, p. 39-61

Potter et al (1997), Democratisation, Cambridge: Polity Press

Reynolds, A (1994), Election ’94 South Africa, St Martins Press

http://www.wku.edu/~sullib/history.1848.htm

http://www.gov.za/yearbook/2001/history.html

http://www.freedomhouse.org/reserch/nattransit.htm

http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/us/fukuyama.htm

www.cla.wayne.edu/polisci/krause/ Comparative/SOURCES/fukayama.htm

http://www.mpwatch.net/Enfield/World%21Order.htm

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