The Decline of Illiberal Democracy

Although politics today is in critical condition—some even say it is dying—it is all the more important to revive it.

Many observers regarded 1999 as a year of progress for democracy in the Arab world. There is reason to doubt, however, whether any meaningful change has really occurred.

Must every state be a nation and every nation a state? Or should we look instead to the example of countries such as India, where one state holds together a…