Democracy and human rights belong together – but their interaction is not always free of conflict. Democracy is legitimate majority decision-making through free, equal elections and open procedures; Human rights set limits on the majority and protect the individual and minorities. If one is under pressure, the other often falters as well. Because democracies seem stable – but they can change.
Lucile Dreidemy, Thomas R. Schmidt and Fabio Wolkenstein from the University of Vienna Using examples from recent history and current events, explain which internal political decisions and measures threaten democracy, what a tipping point is, what warning signals there are and what measures can secure and strengthen the resilience of democracy and human rights.