Severe contractions of national economies have frequently turned public opinion against democratic reformers who were raised to leadership in the wake of the Soviet Union's disintegration, most notably in Russia itself. It seems possible that, in the next few years, a number of recently established democracies will slip backward to one or another form of authoritarian rule. It is impossible to predict which transitional states will fail to sustain democractic institutions in the short term. But important indicators of potential challenges to democracy are human rights abuses, limitations on freedom of the press and of assembly, abuses of police and judicial powers, and harrassment of opposition political parties. The third group is troubled states.
Democracy depends on the establishment and survival of the institutions of civil society.
These democratic foundations are proving painfully hard to maintain in poorer states, including many African countries. Since the introduction of democracy and respect for human rights threatens many entrenched interests in pre-democratic states, such interests will frequently resist such changes, sometimes with violence. Under such circumstances, democracy may collapse under the weight of political conflict or civil war. Thus, in contrast with the heady optimism of the late 1980s, there are now grounds for concern about the worldwide future of democracy and respect for human rights. But cases of failure or backsliding should not distract us from the reality of overall progress.