REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, NUSA DUA -- Delegates attending the Bali Democracy Forum (BDF) VI shared the view that the face of democracy has been transformed by new technological developments such as the Internet and social media.
"The instrument of democracy sometimes doesn't keep up with the pace of change in society. The opinions and voice of the people are heard in other areas much more quickly than in the political arena or within the institutions that are associated with democracy," Netherlands Foreign Affairs Minister Frans Timmermans said during the general debate at BDF VI, in Nusa Dua, Bali, on Thursday.
The rapid development of technology, therefore, has its own effect on democracy, he stated.
"In a television program, viewers can immediately vote for certain candidates online using electronic instruments," he explained.
People would like to have the same kind of influence over current issues, but the democratic system sometimes does not allow this.
"So we have to think through the options created by the era of the Internet and social media and, consequently, the way in which our democratic structure could function in the future," he noted.
The younger generation should also be taken into account by examining the ways in which they operate within virtual communities and how they express their views and by evaluating ways of utilising these views in the democratic process, Timmermans remarked.
In agreement with Timmermans' statements, State Secretary of Wales Hon. David Jones asserted that social media has a significant effect on democracy.
"Social media is playing a crucial role in consolidating democracy. Over two billion people across our planet are connected through the Internet," stated Hon. David Jones.
Social media has been transforming people's lives. "It has the power to instantly connect people on opposite sides of the globe," Jones said.
According to Jones, social media has empowered people by giving everyone a distinctive voice and by enabling diverse views to be heard by the global audience.
BDF VI's theme for this year is "Consolidating Democracy in a Pluralistic Society."
The forum was opened by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Nusa Dua on Thursday, followed by remarks from Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei Darussalam and Timor Leste's PM Xanana Gusmao.
Representatives from 81 countries and three international organizations are taking part in the forum, held from Nov. 7 to 8.
There are two sub-themes that will be discussed during BDF VI: the need for free and fair general elections and ways of building and strengthening democratic institutions, such as the Constitutional Court and the General Elections Commission in each country.
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