Category:Democracy "Promotion" or manipulation

There are many statal or quasi-statal organizations which aim to "promote democracy" in the Third World, manipulate the political outcome, influence "civic society", or subvert the political process. The least of the interventions have to do with improving the electoral systems, election supervision, improve a given political party's PR, set up a pro-globalization/neoliberal media, but it can entail setting up "civic society" groups, manipulate the electoral process, all the way to sabotaging political groupings. The National Endowment for Democracy and its satellite organizations are the most manipulative, and it is clear that they have taken the role that the CIA (and its assorted organizations) used to do prior to 1990. Several other "western" countries have followed the same model, but possibly less interventionist and subversive than the American organizations. In the German, UK, Swedish and Dutch cases, the "democracy promotion" organizations are think tanks and development organizations staffed by cross party operatives. In most cases, these organizations are seen as a sinecure and a means to obtain quasi-statal employment while out of office or parliament, and also a means for junior political members to improve their international experience credentials.

All the statal/quasi-statal groups have given rise to an industry of consultants and related services to influence the political process in the Third World. In some instances, the "democracy manipulators" are spinoffs from the intelligence organizations, e.g., CIA. Such spinoffs also appear in the list below.