In Observance of International Day of Democracy September 15th, 2022 Citizens of the Commonwealth of Dominica, and the rest of the world, will recognize fifteen years since the General Assembly of the United Nations, designated 15 September of each year be observed as the ‘International Day of Democracy’ The intention was to raise the awareness of citizens and to get them to act and become more proactive in the promotion of democracy.
In the UN Secretary- General’s message for 2022, he highlighted the following areas that currently threaten our democracy:
• Backsliding of democracy across the world.
• Civic space is shrinking.
• Distrust and disinformation are growing.
• Polarization is undermining democratic institutions
He warns – NOW IS THE TIME TO RAISE THE ALARM! Right here in Dominica, we see all these threats to our democracy as highlighted in the UN Secretary-General’s message.

Our Civil and Political Rights as citizens, as enshrined in our Constitution, as well as in the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, are being challenged and threatened by the Government on a regular basis.
Our fundamental human right of peaceful assembly and protest is met with arbitrary and in some cases extreme force by law enforcement officials. Democracy needs strong, accountable, and transparent institutions of governance, based on the rule of law, and including an accountable executive, an effective legislature and an independent and impartial judiciary, efficient and inclusive public administration, as well as an informed, empowered and politically active civil society and population. These are the missing elements of our democracy today. As we observe this year’s International Day of Democracy, it would be
remise of us, at Civic Vibes in not drawing the nexus between – ‘Democracy and Free and Fair Elections’
In a recent opinion on the matter of democracy and elections, issued by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in July of 2022, the following comments were made:
“Periodic elections that are free and fair (and transparent) are the lifeblood of a country’s democracy” Emphasis ours the Justices went on to state further ” After all, the most obvious and defining hallmark of liberal democratic states is free and fair (and transparent) elections” Emphasis ours
We have intentionally referenced these comments, to call for the need for Electoral Reform in Dominica.
In closing, Civic Vibes is calling on citizens of the world especially the citizens of Dominica to become engaged, and to remember that democracy is never done. It is always a work in progress.
As we observed this year’s International Day of Democracy, let’s commit ourselves:
“To Cherish, Reform and Defend our Democracy”. “Just talking about democracy is not enough, we must also act towards safeguarding it – Electoral Reform for our country is one way of acting