Democracy and Ukraine

The greatest test of a nascent democracy is the response of a governing party when it loses. The strongest statement of the success of American democracy is images of George H.W. Bush sitting as a guest of honor at Bill Clinton's inauguration, of Al Gore sitting in a place of honor at George W. Bush's inauguration. American democracy passes the test time and time again, because the governing party gracefully acquiesces to the will of the people and accepts their verdict.

News out of Ukraine this past week tells the opposite story, much like news out of Yugoslavia a few years ago. The governing party, facing defeat at the polls, rigs the process to have themselves declared the winner rather than accepting the people's choice. This situation is a blight on the development of democracy in the former Soviet Union. Let us hope it can be resolved peacefully, as happened ultimately in Yugoslavia, and not degrade into civil war as some alarmist observers have predicted.