JAPAN CENTER FOR
INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE

日本国際交流センター

Joint Legislator-Expert Delegationon the Future of Democracy
REPORTOCTOBER 2019
On September日本国際交流センター
17–20, 2019, a joint JCIE delegation of Japanese legislators and policy experts visited
JAPAN CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE
Washington DC to meet with US Congressional members, government officials, think tank experts, andNGO leaders to exchange views on the global state of democracy and on ways in which the two countries
can further support democratization. The delegation members and their American counterparts expressed
concern over the rise of authoritarianism and populism worldwide, as well as about the backsliding incountries that had been thought to be in a transition to democracy, sharing a sense of crisis about the futureof democracy around the globe. In particular, US leaders repeatedly expressed their strong hope that Japan
will play a more proactive role in supporting democratization and the rule of law in the Asia-Pacific region.

US APPROACHES TO DEMOCRACYSUPPORT
Democracy’s Global Retreat
US legislators, government officials, and experts shareda deep sense of concern over democratic backsliding andrising threats to democracy around the world. In many
emerging democracies, progress has been reversed andauthoritarianism is resurgent as widening inequality
and an increase in corruption and crime have fueled
disappointment in democratic transitions. Meanwhile,
economic stagnation, growing disparities, and a backlash against immigration in established democracies
have driven political polarization and a broad sense of
discontent with the political establishment. This, inturn, has fed populism and created a political climatethat allows political leaders to neglect minority voices.

Further, the growing global influence of non-democratic
states such as China and Russia adds to the sense that
authoritarianism is on the rise worldwide. Against thisbackdrop, there is a sense of crisis and a recognition that
democracy must be defended and democratic backsliding must stop.
US Institutions Involved in Democracy Promotion
Overseas
Since its founding, Americans have considered democracy to be their country’s guiding principle, and there
is widespread support for the promotion of democracy internationally. While the Trump administration’s“America first” policies do not seem to prioritize universal values such as human rights, there is strong bipartisan support for democracy promotion in the Congress,
which has continued to appropriate the same level of2budget for democracy support. Thus, those engaged in
the field expressed their belief that there has not been amajor impact on their activities even under the current
administration.
1. US Congress
The Congress plays a central role in leading andsustaining US efforts in democracy promotion. In addition to appropriating the federal government’s budget for democracy-related activities, some members
are involved in direct activities to support democratic
governance around the world. These include the House
Partnership for Democracy, a special commission thatenables Congressional members to visit countries indemocratic transition and work with their local counterparts in training programs that cover issues suchas parliamentary operations, budgeting, and election
campaign debates.
2. US Federal Government Agencies
More than $2 billion is allocated annually from the US
government’s foreign assistance budget to democracy
support activities.1 The State Department uses diplomacy and economic incentives to support democratization, while it also has government-to-government grant
projects. The United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) integrates elements related tosupport for democratization into its overall aid strategies and programs, linking economic development topolitical progress in strengthening democratic institution. It places priority on transparency, anti-corruption
measures, governance, and the protection of humanrights, as being essential for a “journey to self-reliance.”
3. NGOs Operating with US Government Funding
The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and
its associated organizations—National Democratic
Institute (NDI), International Republican Institute (IRI),
American Center for International Labor Solidarity(Solidarity Center), and Center for International Private
Enterprise (CIPE)—are nonprofit organizations thathave independent boards and manage their own projects. While their operations are largely funded by the
1. Activities that receive these funds include programs run by
the State Department, USAID, and NED.

DELEGATION MEMBERS
JAPANESE DIET MEMBERS
Hon. Toshiko Abe, Member, House of Representatives(Liberal Democratic Party–LDP)
Hon. Shu Sakurai, Member, House of Representatives(Constitutional Democratic Party)
Hon. Hiromi Takase, Member, House of Councillors(Komeito)
Hon. Keisuke Tsumura, Member, House ofRepresentatives (Democratic Party for the People)
Hon. Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi, Member, House ofRepresentatives (LDP)STUDY TEAM MEMBERS
Dr. Takako Hikotani, Professor, Columbia University
Dr. Maiko Ichihara, Associate Professor, Hitotsubashi
University
Dr. Kaori Shoji, Professor in American Politics,
Gakushuin University Faculty of Law
Amb. Yukio Takasu, Special Advisor on Human
Security to the UN Secretary General; former UN
Under-Secretary General for Management; former
Japanese Ambassador to the United Nations
JCIE STAFF
Mr. James Gannon, Executive Director, JCIE/USA
Dr. Atsuko Yokobori Geiger, Fellow, JCIE/USA
Ms. Hideko Katsumata, Executive Director & COO,
JCIE/JapanMr. Stephen McHugh, Assistant Program Officer,
JCIE/USA

US government, they also receive grants from foreign
governments and private foundations and they undertake various democracy support projects worldwide,
including projects designed to protect minority populations, nurture civil society (e.g., independent media),
and build international networks.
4. Other Independent NGOs
Other American democracy support NGOs, such as
Freedom House, operate with a range of funding, including grants from US government agencies, foreign
governments, and private foundation grants, as well as
corporate and individual donations. In addition to carrying out direct programming around the world, many
are also engaged in advocacy and research activities,
including the development of democracy-related

3indexes and analyses (e.g., Freedom House’s Freedom
in the World report).
There is no overarching system that coordinates these
actors, but there is a level of coordination thanks tomeetings among organizations and information sharing
at the field level.
KEY FINDINGS
Legislators Have a Critical Role to Play in
Democracy Support
The meetings in DC deepened the understanding among
participants of the important role that the Congress andCongressional members play in the field of democracy
support in the United States. In addition to appropriating
the government’s budget for democracy-related activities, Congressional members are engaged in direct support projects on a bipartisan basis through parliamentary
exchanges designed to share experiences and support
capacity building for parliamentarians and parliamentary staff in countries in transition. They play a central
role in leading and sustaining US democracy support.
The Diversity of Actors in the Field Is a Source of
US Strength
In the United States, a wide range of institutions, organizations, and individuals are involved in activities related to support for democratization, and that diversity
is considered one of the country’s strengths in the field.
Reflecting the diversity of actors, a wide range of activities is also taking place. In addition to direct measures,such as dispatching election observation missions, theactivities considered within the framework of democratization support include civic education, human resource
development, technical support for administrative functions, and women’s empowerment.
Even US Democracy Support Tends to Defer to Host
Governments
Those involved in democratization support repeatedly
stressed that their assistance is not about imposing theAmerican style of democracy or political system onothers. To be effective, the principle should be to undertake projects with the intention of extending support
where it is requested and sharing experiences, including

mistakes. While some programs provide direct support tocivil society organizations or media outlets that may beworking in opposition to the government, the vast majority of projects are undertaken with the understanding of
host country governments, and often at their request.
There Are Strong Hopes for Japan to Be More
Active in Supporting Democratization
The consistent message from those with whom thedelegation met—regardless of whether they were government officials, politicians, or experts from NGOs or
think tanks—was a strong hope that Japan would expand
its work in the field. US government officials expressed
their hope for greater US-Japan coordination and cooperation in affirming universal values—including therule of law, human rights, and democratic governance—
as a core element of the Open and Free Indo-Pacific
Vision, alongside the economic development and security that the vision also entails.
US leaders also pointed out that Japan is seen by
many in Asia as a model since it is the region’s mostestablished and stable democracy, and that there is a
growing trust in and hope for the Japanese approach
to international cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region,
which respects the ownership and priorities of recipient
countries and supports those countries’ efforts at selfhelp. Think tank experts also noted that there is a greaterappreciation for Japan’s leadership in Asia in recent
years, including for its role in championing the TransPacific Partnership (TPP) after the US withdrawal.
While there are growing expectations of Japan,
Congressional members pointed out during their meetingwith the delegation that Japan’s presence often seems to
be lacking in international democracy forums as well ason the ground. They expressed their hope to strengthen
coordination and to expand political exchange on thisissue between Japan and the United States. While mostof the US participants in the meetings stressed that Japan
will have to formulate its own approach, they expressed
their hope that Japan will expand its contributions in awide range of areas leading to democratization. Some
examples discussed included technical support forparliamentary operations and government administration, women’s empowerment, media support, and thedevelopment of cyber-security technology. Some also

4suggested that Japan consider establishing an institution
specializing in the support of democratization.
There Is Debate Over What Japanese-Style“Democratization Support” Would Entail
During the program, two key questions were discussed:
What is the significance for Japan of its efforts to protect democracy around the world? And how can the government and politicians gain the understanding of theJapanese people for expanded support for democratization efforts?
There is some hesitancy to discuss “democracy promotion” in Japan, as seen in foreign policy documents—for example, the Development Cooperation Charter
uses the term “support for democratization” instead.
However, while Japan has not been directly engaged in
explicit efforts to promote democracy, it has supported
the building of democratic institutions with an assumption that “high quality and inclusive growth” can only
be achieved when human rights are respected, people
can engage in economic activities without fear, social
foundations are operated fairly, and the rule of law is respected. It has provided support to developing countries
for election administration, the development of judicial
systems, law enforcement training, anti-corruption initiatives, financial management training, administrative
capacity building (including human resource development), women’s empowerment, and efforts to strengthen
independent journalism at the request of the recipient
governments. (It should also be noted, though, that the
average share of Japan’s ODA for government and civilsociety support over the past 10 years remained at only
2.1 percent, which is still considerably lower than other
DAC countries, and most of Japan’s support went to recipient countries’ governments.)
Given that democracies where human rights andfreedom of speech are protected are less likely to go towar, support for democratization should be viewed aspart of the country’s international cooperation for peace.
Furthermore, expanding support for democratization canmake a crucial contribution to achieving UN Sustainable
Development Goal 16, which calls for the promotion of“just, peaceful and inclusive societies.”

POTENTIAL NEXT STEPS
Reaffirming and Elucidating Japan’s Support for
Democratization Support
Japan came to enjoy peace and prosperity following
World War II thanks largely to its embrace of democratic
principles, such as a free and open economic and tradesystem, the rule of law, and respect for human rights.
Maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific region andstrengthening democratization support will be essential for Japan if it wishes to continue to enjoy peace andprosperity. At the same time, Japan’s foreign policy andODA approaches have differed from that of the UnitedStates and other developed countries in important ways.
While learning from the experiences of other countries,
Japan needs to think more deeply about which institutional structures, approaches, and priority areas are best
suited for a distinctly Japanese form of democratization
support—one that is based on its own unique historicalexperience, institutions and norms, past practices, andgeopolitical considerations.
Reevaluating Japan’s Past Approaches and Reflectingin Foreign Policy and Development Cooperation
In order to better equip Japan to effectively support thestrengthening of democratic institutions, it is importantto undertake an evaluation of the efficacy and impactof the activities in the field that Japan is already undertaking. In light of the challenges to democracy aroundthe world as well as the importance of achieving SDG
16, Japan should consider how to give greater priority
to activities connected to support for democratizationin the future revision of its National Security Strategy,
Development Cooperation Charter, and the JICA MidTerm Plan.
Strengthening Parliamentary Exchanges
As leaders in an established Asian democracy, JapaneseDiet members have much experience that they can sharewith parliamentarians and others in emerging democracies, especially considering the important role that theDiet and its members play in sustaining Japan’s support
for democratic institution building. They can share theirexpertise and can strengthen coordination with parliamentarians from other countries through parliamentary

5exchanges, participating in international site visits andworkshops, and inviting parliamentarians from other
Asian countries to visit Japan. (Ideally, such delegations would reflect gender balance, with at least one
third of the delegates being women parliamentarians.)
Providing Greater Support for Civil Society
Activities
It will be helpful for Japan to become more engaged
in civil society dialogues and networks with other
Asian countries as one step to strengthen its support
for democratization efforts. Also, Japan’s traditional
approach of providing ODA only at the request of recipient governments can be problematic when it comesto support for democratization, even though it generally
has many benefits as well. Therefore, it is worthwhile

examining ways to expand grantmaking to Japaneseand non-Japanese civil society organizations engaged in
activities related to democratization.

JCIE was able to carry out this program thanks to the generous support of the Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands, the
MRA House, the National Endowment for Democracy, and the Yoshio Okawara Memorial Fund for US-Japan Relations, aswell as JCIE’s many corporate and individual supporters.

KEY MEETINGSUS Congress

US Government

Bill Flores, Member, House of Representatives (R-TX)

US Department of State

Robin Kelly, Member, House of Representatives (D-IL)

USAID

David Price, Member, Member, House of Representatives(D-NC); Chairman of the House Appropriations

Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development; Co-chair, House Democracy Partnership
Adrian Smith, Member, Member, House of Representatives(R-NE); Co-chair, US-Japan Congressional Caucus
Norma Torres, Member, House of Representatives (D-CA)
Raul Ruiz, Member, House of Representatives (D-CA)
Cory Gardner, Member, US Senate (R-CO); Chairman, US
Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia,
the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity

Think Tanks and NGOs
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Brookings Institution
Center for Strategic & International Studies
Council on Foreign Relations
Annenberg Family Trust at Sunnylands
National Endowment for Democracy
National Democratic InstituteInternational Republican Institute
Freedom House

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