Editorial: Thirst for democracy

Tuesday, March 29, 2005 | 8:58 a.m.

Just a few short years ago it was unthinkable that democratic impulses would one day stir against tyranny in Iraq, Lebanon and Ukraine. But that is exactly what has happened. Now we may soon add to the list of such improbable nations the country of Kyrgyzstan, like Ukraine, once a republic of the former Soviet Union. Last week Kyrgyzstan was the scene of protests against the autocratic government backed by Russia, demonstrations that ultimately led Kyrgyzstan's leader to flee the Central Asian nation.

In Iraq, President Bush's decision to invade and remove dictator Saddam Hussein from power helped usher in the promise of a democratic nation, one that has taken root as the country prepares to draft a constitution. The elections in Iraq and a popular uprising in Ukraine against a fraudulent election there, mixed in with President Bush's recent call for the expansion of democracy around the globe, provided outside sustenance for the uprisings in Lebanon and Kyrgyzstan. The outcome in Kyrgyzstan still is uncertain, but Ukraine's peaceful revolution definitely provided the residents of Kyrgyzstan with the confidence to stand up against their corrupt government.

It's not to say that this yearning for liberty will replicate itself into miniature versions of the United States. Indeed, we shouldn't be surprised to see civil wars or one or two nations reverting back to authoritarian rulers with a clampdown on civil liberties, something that happened in Russia after its peaceful revolution led to communism's downfall. But, for now, democracy is on the move in some very unlikely places, and that's something to behold.