Democracy has its conditions

Successful democracy has its conditions, which should not be ignored by developing countries in their pursuit for a better future, said an article in People's Daily (excerpts below):

Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi was overthrown one year after he became the first democratically elected president in the country. Egypt again comes to a crossroad as it did one year ago.

Egypt is not an individual case, but an epitome of many developing countries' democratic transformation. Egypt teaches us some general lessons through its setbacks in the past year.

First, political changes affect the stability of a country and must be prudent and cautious. Western countries' democracy is based on national unification, identification and social justice. These conditions are often neglected by democracy advocates in developing countries. However, these conditions are crucial for the success of democracy in developing countries.

Without these conditions, democracy can still exist in developing countries. But it is very difficult for these countries to draw benefits from a democracy copied directly from the West.

Second, the priority mission for developing countries is to improve people's livelihoods and maintain stable domestic and regional environments for economic growth.

The history of developed countries also indicates successful democracy has its foundations. When developing countries build up those foundations, they are actually developing in the direction of democracy. Usually, the foundations are not built up in a Western democratic way.

The Egyptian people are expected to find the right way leading them into a better future after their "second revolution".