ABSTRACT
An inconsistency undercuts much thinking about the relationship between democracy and security. Among the world's established democracies, and particularly in the United States and Western Europe, national security concerns are often described as existing in tension with democracy. Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 in the United States, and later attacks in Spain and England, democratic rights and freedoms were mainly conceived as providing operational space for terrorists and other subversive forces. Similar concerns about trade-offs between open societies and security also inform debates on immigration in places such as the United States and France. At the same time – and herein lies the inconsistency – the application of more democracy has often been invoked as an antidote to security threats in places without functioning democratic systems. In such places, typically located in underdeveloped areas of the world, the empowerment of populations – the distribution of political voice, rights and freedoms – is conceived of as contributing to a more robust security situation.
