Democracy is not just elections. Elections are meaningless, and it's not a democracy, unless you have a working and independent judiciary system, free and state-independent press, open opposition that is not persecuted and killed, freedom of speech, no political prisoners and no people arrested and sentenced to years of jail time just for coming to a political protest.
Syria had a "state of emergency" army rule since the 1960-s, which was only "lifted" in 2011 because of the popular uprising demanded it. Then he just started indiscriminately bombing city of Homs, where opposition was. Asad has succeeded his father in uninterrupted rule of the country for decades. No true opposition is allowed to exist (just like in Russia). Army had all the power all this time. It's a classic military dictatorship, if ever there is one.
The notion that country that has ruled for decades by father and then son is democratic is laughable, even without knowing anything else. But of course you don't see it as a problem, because Putin ruling the Russia for at lest 16 years seems OK to most Russians...
You have to understand what freedom is, actually want it, and value freedom and human life, in order to understand what democracy is. That's why there will be no democracy in the foreseeable future in the middle east (with exception of Israel) and in Russia as well. People are just not ready. The don't understand or want freedom and don't value human life at all...
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Syria had a "state of emergency" army rule since the 1960-s, which was only "lifted" in 2011 because of the popular uprising demanded it. Then he just started indiscriminately bombing city of Homs, where opposition was. Asad has succeeded his father in uninterrupted rule of the country for decades. No true opposition is allowed to exist (just like in Russia). Army had all the power all this time. It's a classic military dictatorship, if ever there is one.
The notion that country that has ruled for decades by father and then son is democratic is laughable, even without knowing anything else. But of course you don't see it as a problem, because Putin ruling the Russia for at lest 16 years seems OK to most Russians...
You have to understand what freedom is, actually want it, and value freedom and human life, in order to understand what democracy is. That's why there will be no democracy in the foreseeable future in the middle east (with exception of Israel) and in Russia as well. People are just not ready. The don't understand or want freedom and don't value human life at all...