Democracy cannot be exported to other countries mechanically: former German minister

The Afghanistan mission of Germany and the West under the leadership of the United Nations showed that democracy and the rule of law could not simply be exported mechanically, Rudolf Scharping, Germany's former defense minister, has said.

The idea that democracy could be exported to other countries like Afghanistan was naive, Scharping wrote in an essay for the newspaper Berliner Zeitung published recently, noting democracy and the rule of law were "never static, but dynamic processual developments."

The only way to help the people in Afghanistan is through dialogue with those in power in the country, Scharping said, adding the dialogues must be conducted jointly with Russia and China, as well as all regional powers around Afghanistan.

The different levels of development, cultural traditions and social and political history of a country had to be kept in mind, Scharping continued, adding that it will be better to "agree on all basic human rights and make them the benchmark of political action."

"Much would be gained if we in Germany and Europe could reach agreement on the theory and practice of a value-based and realistic foreign and security policy," Scharping noted. "We are not the world's chief teachers." Enditem