Hypocrisy of US democracy: A weapon against dissenting countries

By Zhang Andi

For years, the US has attempted to model other countries after its own image and export its brand of democracy. Such attempts are entirely undemocratic and at odds with the core values of democracy.

1. Color revolution

Since 2003, Eastern Europe and Central Asia have seen the “Rose Revolution” in Georgia, the “Orange Revolution” in Ukraine, and the “Tulip Revolution” in Kyrgyzstan.

The US State Department openly admitted playing a “central role” in these “regime changes”.

The US has developed a system of strategies and tactics for the so called “peaceful evolution”. It would start with “cultural exchanges”, economic assistance, and then public opinion shaping to foster an atmosphere for “color revolution”. It would exaggerate the mistakes and flaws of incumbent governments to foment public grievances and anti-government sentiments.

2. "Arab Spring"

As 2010 drew to a close, Tunisian citizen Bouazizi's grief and anger ignited a dramatic upheaval in the Arab world. The US orchestrated the show behind the scene, and played a key role.

The New York Times revealed in 2011 that a small core of American government-financed organizations were promoting democracy in Arab states before the Arab spring. A number of the groups and individuals directly involved in the “Arab Spring” revolts received training and financing from US organizations such as the International Republican Institute, the National Democratic Institute, and Freedom House.

As consequences, the vast majority of Arab countries, far from achieving the freedom, democracy and prosperity they had dreamed of, were plunged into chronic economic stagnation, social unrest, war, blight, and humanitarian crisis.

In Libya, Syria and Yemen, outside interventions turned revolutions into years of civil war. According to a study published on Lancet, between 2010 and 2013, Yemen, Tunisia, and Egypt lost about three months of life expectancy. Men in Syria had been expected to live to around 75 in 2010, that has fallen to about 69 years three years later. For Syrian women, average life expectancy dropped from about 80 to 75 years over the same period.

In a survey conducted in 2020, most people in Syria, Yemen, Lybia, and Sudan, believed their lives are worse than before the Arab spring.

The turmoil in Syria has even created a breeding ground for the terrorist organization ISIL, posing threat to peace and security in the Middle East and the world.

3. Afghanistan War

While in other occasions, the US export its brand of democracy by force, leading to humanitarian disasters.

The 20-year US war in Afghanistan has left the country devastated and impoverished. A total of 47,245 Afghan civilians and 66,000 to 69,000 Afghan soldiers and police were killed in US military operations, and more than 10 million people were displaced. The war destroyed the foundation for Afghanistan’s economic development and reduced Afghans to destitution.

4. Iraq War

In 2003, the US launched military strikes against Iraq for its alleged possession of weapons of mass destruction. The civilian death toll of the Iraq war is between 200,000 and 250,000, including over 16,000 directly killed by the US military. More than a million people lost their homes. Moreover, the US troops seriously violated international humanitarian principles, as evidenced by the frequent incidence of prisoner abuse. Until now, the US has never produced any credible proof of Iraq’s possession of weapons of mass destruction.

As suggested by the French website Le Grand Soir, democracy has long become a weapon of massive destruction for the US to attack countries with different views.