Pakistan Declared Only Asian Country to be "Authoritarian Regime" in Democracy Index | Oneindia News - video Dailymotion

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Pakistan's democracy faces a significant setback as it's downgraded to an "authoritarian regime" in the 2023 Democracy Index report by the Economist Intelligence Unit. Erosion of judicial independence and government dysfunction contribute to the decline. Experts express concern over the regression and call for urgent measures to safeguard democratic principles.    #Pakistan #PakistanDemocracy #DemocracyIndex #EconomostIntelligenceUnit #Authoritarian #AsifMunir #Pakistanelections #Worldnews #Oneindia #Oneindia News                  ~HT.99~PR.152~ED.102~

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00:00 After the tumultuous elections, Pakistan's democracy faced a significant setback as it

00:05 was downgraded to an authoritarian regime marking a steep decline from its previous

00:11 classification as a hybrid regime, according to the 2023 Democracy Index report by the

00:17 Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

00:20 This makes Pakistan the only Asian country in Australia and Asia region to be characterized

00:24 as such, indicating a troubling trend in the country's democratic trajectory.

00:29 The EIU Democracy Index, which evaluates the state of democracy in 165 independent states

00:35 and two territories, shed light on Pakistan's deteriorating democratic landscape.

00:40 Out of the 28 countries assessed in the region, 15 experienced a decline in their democratic

00:45 score, with only 8 showing improvement.

00:49 Pakistan's own score plummeted by 0.88 points to 3.25, resulting in an alarming drop of

00:55 11 places in the global ranking, positioning it at 118th place.

01:01 One of the most concerning aspects highlighted in the report was the erosion of judicial

01:05 independence alongside interventions in the electoral process and government dysfunction.

01:09 Despite Pakistan's democratic journey since 2008, maintaining a score slightly over 4,

01:15 2023 witnessed a sharp decline to 3.25, a historic low primarily attributed to the coalition

01:21 government comprising the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz, Pakistan's People's Party and

01:25 Jamaat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl.

01:27 Notably, Pakistan's current democratic score of 3.25 is even worse than it was in 2006,

01:33 3.92, during the tenure of military ruler General Retired Parvez Musharraf.

01:39 This regression underscores a disappointing trend, prompting leaders to introspect the

01:43 development.

01:45 Michael Kugelman, a South Asia expert at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars,

01:49 lamented Pakistan's regression despite 15 years of former civilian rule and decentralisation

01:55 reforms that initially bolstered democracy.

01:58 He emphasised that the current trajectory does not bode well for the country's democratic

02:01 future.

02:02 In addition, Madiha Afzal, a scholar at the Brookings Institution, echoed concern over

02:07 Pakistan's democratic decline, attributing it partly to the concessions made to the establishment

02:11 by the opposition alliance and their influence during the caretaker set-up.

02:16 He emphasised the importance of global scrutiny and awareness regarding Pakistan's democratic

02:20 backsliding.

02:21 The EIU's classification serves as a stark reminder of the challenges facing Pakistan's

02:26 democracy and underscores the urgent need for concentrated efforts to safeguard democratic

02:31 institutions and processes.

02:38 [BLANK_AUDIO]

Pakistan Declared Only Asian Country to be "Authoritarian Regime" in Democracy Index | Oneindia News

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