This article is from Democracy Chronicles:

There has never been a more appropriate and urgent occasion to celebrate International Democracy Day, say advocates and analysts.

On 25 June the joint Letter to Defend Democracy was issued as an initiative of International IDEA and the National Endowment for Democracy, with the backing of over 150 organizations and over 800 individual signatories. Read the letter in one of 13 languages and join the campaign.

The global pandemic has highlighted the resilience of democratic institutions, the universal desire for fundamental freedoms, and the necessity of multilateralism, said International IDEA. Yet the crisis has also shed light on the ease with which restrictions can be imposed on democratic checks and balances, civic participation, and human rights, and it has exposed challenges for cooperation in times of need.

Read the full perspective here.