Democracy or Security?

As imperialism enters a crisis, it continues its attacks on developing countries. Since the beginning of the 2000s, neoliberalism has been in crisis, while simultaneously feeding off this crisis. In particular, the United States and other imperialist states act as obstacles to the freedom and democracy struggles of developing countries, causing existing freedoms and democracy to regress even further.

Developing countries are among the richest in terms of underground and surface resources. In these countries, the struggle for freedom and democracy is weakened through neoliberal policies, and a political and economic environment more suitable to their interests is prepared. However, as seen in the recent events in Iran, the public did not believe in the US promises of freedom and democracy and said "no" to them. They clearly demonstrated that there would be no more freedom through the promises of another imperialist state. Because they did not allow the governments in these countries to be toppled by imperialists; they said, "if we are going to topple them, we will do it ourselves."

Neoliberalism has largely eliminated the concept of the social welfare state all over the world. In every country it has entered, it has imposed the shrinking of the public sector, the expansion of the market, and consequently the weakening of the state. In a sense, liberalism and conservatism have become intertwined in developing countries. This situation has caused democratic demands to be replaced by a "every man for himself" mentality, especially in countries experiencing imperialist interventions. This has led to the erosion of both democracy and freedom demands.

On the other hand, there has been a serious erosion in areas such as national sentiments, national consciousness, civic awareness, and loyalty to the state. At this point, demands for more freedom and democracy in developing countries have begun to be replaced by security and securitarian policies.

Developing countries will be forced to allocate a significant portion of their budgets to security policies and defense by cutting welfare spending in the face of imperialist threats. For these countries, sovereignty and security will come to the fore, and imperialism will be perceived as a serious threat.

The priority will now shift to a security-oriented approach; demands for strong centralized administrations and strong leadership will increase. More budget will have to be allocated to defense, the military, and security institutions. This situation will cause demands for democracy and freedom, which are already fragile, to be pushed into the background.

The political culture of countries will be decisive in overcoming this process with less damage. The economic situation and how leaders manage the crisis are of great importance.

A strong state concept must be developed against imperialism and foreign interventions. We must further strengthen a state structure that functions effectively, regularly, and reliably. To do this, we must increase our tax collection capacity, use resources efficiently, and manage the economy effectively during crisis periods. While doing all this, we must also protect the rights of citizens in the best possible way. Only in this way can we build a strong state that derives its legitimacy from the people.